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  • Writer's pictureLacey Flanagan Maine

Nature Is a Source of Inspiration for Art



Not only do artists who make beautiful drawings draw inspiration from nature. The natural world served as an inspiration to philosophers and scientists like Aristotle and Einstein. The beauty of their surroundings served as inspiration for many of their essential pieces. Nature can teach us a lot, one of which is the strength of symmetry.


American painter Winslow Homer was influenced by the enormous majesty of nature and used it as inspiration for his work in the late 19th century. Using loose brushstrokes, he attempted to depict this feeling on canvas. His artwork captures the majesty of nature in its unyielding, uncaring state toward the dramas of human existence.

Homer self-taught himself the art of oil painting even though he attended the National Academy of Design. Homer's family asked him to cover the American Civil War after he spent some time overseas. The Northern States began to read "illustrated news" thanks to Homer's sketches, drawings, and engravings. A few of these studies were ultimately adapted into oil paintings that show the daily lives of regular troops.

Later works of Winslow Homer were also influenced by his writings about the Civil War. His well-known artwork, "Near Andersonville," shows a number of once slaves standing silently in a shadowy entryway. Additionally, a Confederate prison camp is shown in the image, where captured Union soldiers are held by Confederate troops. The optimistic and realistic aspects of war are equally captured in Homer's works.


A classic picture of a tiger in a storm by French artist Henri Rousseau helped him become well-known. Despite never leaving France, his paintings of tropical landscapes became well-known. Botanical books, neighborhood gardens, and even tales he had heard from others served as sources of inspiration for him.

As a keen observer of nature, Rousseau was fascinated with unaltered natural environments. He, therefore, depicted images from the mythical Golden Age as well as jungles, wild creatures, and other settings. All accepted standards of composition, line design, and perspective were disregarded in the making of the paintings. Rousseau's artwork is characterized by its asymmetrical composition and vivid colors that are backlit.

While Rousseau insisted that nature was his only instructor, he nevertheless admitted that certain renowned Academic artists had given him advice. Despite the fact that his paintings displayed the traditional characteristics of a "naive" painter, he was still able to produce a piece of art that was distinguished by a sense of mystery and surprise.


Winslow Homer portrays the beauty of nature in his ephemeral works of art that are inspired by the outdoors in a personal and passionate way. With expressive brushwork and gestural patterns, nature enthusiast Homer attempts to depict that feeling on canvas. His works portray the enduring and unyielding power of nature, which appears unconcerned by human drama.

Homer was an excellent figure painter, even though the Hudson River School mostly painted seascapes and landscapes. His works were also up to date and sensitive to contemporary culture. The brand-new exhibit at the Fogg Museum, "Winslow Homer: An American Landscape," serves as a fantastic introduction to the artist.

Most people agree that Winslow Homer is among the most well-known American artists of the nineteenth century. His sea paintings are among the most striking and emotional pieces in the nation. He had a drawing and watercolor skills. His topics frequently focused on how people suffer in cruel environments.


The natural beauty that Juan Carlos Suarez depicts is a major source of inspiration. He created more than a thousand works of art, many of which were turned into posters or displayed in galleries. Twenty-eight volumes of the author's work were released between 1856 and 1878. He also composed several responsa in addition to his Aristotle commentaries, which were utilized in lectures.

An amazing accomplishment is Suarez's Metaphysical Disputations, a lengthy metaphysical treatise that spans fifty-four disputes. The book offers an authoritative presentation of ancient metaphysics, with a total of 7000 references to various other thinkers. The way Suarez views metaphysics is unique; he views it as an investigation into the nature of existence.


In 1908, French painter Henri Rousseau produced surreal landscapes. Rousseau, who did not attend art school, found inspiration for his landscape paintings in the animals he saw in the Paris zoos. His works arouse strong emotions as well as feelings of mystery and tranquility.

Despite not receiving any professional art instruction, Rousseau was able to create a distinctive aesthetic and point of view that would later become synonymous with him. His works, now referred to as "jungle paintings," were influenced by the natural beauty of the jungle. Rousseau was able to depict the exotic sense of the jungle using common native plants after drawing inspiration from the Paris Botanical Gardens and the Natural History Museum. His lush landscapes frequently have a surreal feel to them.

Even though Rousseau drew inspiration from nature, his landscapes can nevertheless be quite excessive and overblown. For instance, the picture Boy on the Rocks, 1889, which depicts a little child struggling to conquer an obstacle, is grossly exaggerated. However, detractors have highlighted that Rousseau had trouble telling the difference between imagination and reality due to his attention to detail.

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