Best Landscape Artists: 1400-Present

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Top 10 Best Landscape Artists

World's Greatest Painters of Landscapes.

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World's Best Landscape Artists

Introduction to Landscape

The Hay Wain (1821) (detail)

National Gallery, London.
By John Constable.

LANDSCAPE ARTISTS: ENGLAND

For some of the most important
landscape painters, during the
eighteenth and nineteenth
centuries, (1700-1900) see:
Best English Painters.

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Landscape art (from the Dutch word 'landschap', a patch of cultivated ground)
refers to portrayals of outdoor scenery such as meadows, fields, trees, rivers,
mountains, lakes, valleys, coastlines, beaches, estuaries and so on. Sky and
weather conditions may also appear prominently in a landscape composition.
Human figures however are traditionally included only as staffage or as a minor
element. When people become an important feature, the picture is usually
defined as an outdoor genre-painting (everyday scene).
Although landscape painting was established as a genre during the 15th
century, it wasn't until the 17th century that Dutch Realist artists began to take
it seriously. Then in the 18th century, concurrent with the architectural
townscapes of Canaletto (1697-1768) of the school of Venetian painting, came
the cultivation of country estates - especially in Britain - which stimulated
demand for topographical pictures (like "photos") from proud landowners. The
early years of the 19th century witnessed the Golden Age of English landscape
painting, led by Turner and Constable, and also the development of plein-air
techniques by the Barbizon school, and later by Monet's style of outdoor
Impressionism - methods greatly facilitated by the invention of portable
collapsible tin paint tubes in 1841, by American painter John Rand. In America,
the Hudson River School (c.1825-75) was the first landscape painting
movement to portray the grandeur and remote beauty of the newly discovered
continent. The School spawned other mini-movements like Luminism and the
Rocky Mountain School.

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Best Landscape Artists: 1400-Present

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The Burning of the Houses of Lords

and Commons (1835)
Philadelphia Museum of Art.
By JMW Turner.
BEST ART IN IRELAND
Best Irish Landscape Artists
Review of the top exponents
of landscape painting in Ireland.

WORLD'S GREATEST ARTISTS

See our compilations of the top
creative practitioners in history:
Best Artists of All Time
The greatest painters & sculptors
Best History Painters
Top 10 exponents of allegorical,
mythological, narrative art.
Best Portrait Artists
Top 10 portraitists ever.
Best Genre Painters
Top 10 exponents of genre
painting, notably Dutch Realists.
Best Still Life Painters
Top 10 exponents of still life
painting.
BEST ART MUSEUMS IN WORLD
For a list of the finest public
art galleries in Europe, America
and worldwide, see:
Art Museums: Greatest
WORLD'S GREATEST ART WORKS
For a list of masterpieces
of painting & sculpture, see:
Greatest Paintings Ever.

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19th-Century Landscape Artists From Russia

When it comes to listing famous late 19th-century landscape
painters, the first and most obvious candidate is the French
Impressionist Claude Monet (1840-1926). After all, who has not
heard of his haystack or water-lily canvases? After Monet, we
might choose another Impressionist plein air devotee like Alfred
Sisley (1839-1899) or Camille Pissarro (1830-1903). But very few
of us would think of mentioning a Russian artist. This, despite the
fact that Russia has raised some of the finest scenic and naturalist
painters in the history of European art. Right now I'll mention just
two who are well worth getting to know: Ivan Shishkin (1832-98)
and Isaac Levitan (1860-1900). Shishkin's specialty was painting
trees and woodland, hence his nickname "Czar of the Forest", and
one of his many masterpieces is Oak Grove (1887, Museum of
Russian Art, Kiev). Isaac Levitan is less epic than Shishkin, though
more varied in style and subject matter. His rendition of light can
be absolutely breathtaking. See for example his awesome Secluded
Monastery (1890, Tretyakov Gallery). He travelled extensively, and
many of his pictures - such as The Road To Vladimir (1892,
Tretyakov), and Golden Autumn (1895, Tretyakov) - offer an
authentic glimpse of Mother Russia.

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Best Landscape Artists: 1400-Present

EVOLUTION OF FINE ART

For details about the development
of Western painting and sculpture
see: History of Art Timeline.

http://www.visual-arts-cork.com/best-landscape-artists.htm

Daniel Piechnick

MOVEMENTS, PERIODS, ARTISTS

For more information, see:
History of Art
MOST FAMOUS ARTISTS
Old Masters (1300-1830)
Great European painters.
Famous Painters (1830-present)
Greatest painters of modern era.

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Position of Landscape in the Hierarchy of the Painting Genres

Landscape was ranked number 4 in the hierarchy of the genres (types of
picture) by the great European academies of fine art, as announced in 1669 by
Andre Felibien, Secretary to the French Academy. The other genres (in order of
importance) were History painting, Portraiture, Genre-Works, and Still Life. The
low ranking bestowed on landscape art stemmed from its lesser "narrative"
content (that is, moral message). In an attempt to overcome this, early
landscape artists tried to infuse their pictures with an uplifting message,
connecting the views captured with mythological or aesthetic significance.

The Top 10 Landscape Artists

This list of famous landscape painters has been compiled by our Editor Neil
Collins MA LLB. It represents his personal view of the ten best exponents of
scenic art. Like any such compilation it reveals more about the personal tastes
of the compiler than the landscape painters being ranked. (See also our article
for students/teachers: Art Evaluation: How to Appreciate Art and also How to
Appreciate Paintings.)
JOINT No 10.
Thomas Cole (1801-48) and Frederic Edwin Church (1826-1900)
THOMAS COLE: The greatest American landscape painter of the early 19th
century, and a founder of the Hudson River School, Thomas Cole was born in
England where he worked as an apprentice engraver before emigrating to the
USA in 1818, where he achieved rapid recognition as a view painter, settling in
the village of Catskill in the Hudson Valley. Already an admirer of both Claude
Lorraine and Turner, he visited England and Italy 1829-32, after which (partly
due the encouragement he received from John Martin and Turner) he began to
focus less on the depiction of natural scenery and more on grandiose allegorical
and historical themes. Greatly impressed with the natural beauty of the
American scenery, Cole infused much of his landscape art with great feeling
and an unmistakable romantic grandeur.
Famous Landscapes by Thomas Cole
- The Last of the Mohicans (1827) oil on canvas, Fenimore Art Museum, NY
- View on the Catskill - Early Autumn (1837) oil on canvas, Metropolitan, NY

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- American Lake Scene (1844) oil on canvas, Detroit Institute of Arts

FREDERIC EDWIN CHURCH: A pupil of Cole, Church arguably exceeded his
master in his monumental romantic panoramas, each of which conveyed
something of the spirituality of nature. Church painted spectacular views of
natural scenery from all over the American continent from Labrador to the
Andes. For more, see: Frederic Edwin Church Biography.
Famous Landscapes by Frederic Church
- The Falls of Niagara (1857, Corcoran, Washington)
- The Heart of the Andes (1859, Metropolitan Museum New York)
- Twilight in the Wilderness (1860, Cleveland Museum of Art)
- Cotopaxi (1862, Detroit Institute of Arts)
No 9. Caspar David Friedrich (1774-1840)
Introspective, melancholic and somewhat reclusive, Caspar David Friedrich is
the greatest landscape painter of the romantic tradition. Born near the Baltic,
he settled permanently in Dresden, where he focused exclusively on the
spiritual connections and significance of landscape, being inspired by the
haunted silence of the forest, as well as the effect of light (sunrise, dusk,
moonlight) and the seasons. His genius lay in his ability to capture a hitherto
undiscovered spiritual dimension in nature, which gives his landscape painting
an emotional, mystical edge which has never been equalled.
Famous Works by Caspar David Friedrich
- Winter Landscape (1811) oil on canvas, National Gallery, London
- Landscape at Riesengebirge (1830), oil on canvas, Pushkin Museum, Moscow
- Man and Woman Gazing at the Moon (1830-5) oil, Nationalgalerie, Berlin
No 8. Alfred Sisley (1839-1899)
Often called the "forgotten Impressionist", the Anglo-French Alfred Sisley was
second only to Monet in his fidelity to spontaneous plein-airism: indeed, he was
the only one of the Impressionists to devote himself exclusively to landcape
painting. His seriously undervalued reputation rests on his skill in capturing the
unique effects of the light and seasons on a wide range of landscape,
waterscape and riverscape scenery. His depiction of early light and dull
afternoons is especially memorable. Not high fashion at present but still ranks
as one of the greatest exponents of Impressionist landscape painting. Could
well become re-evaluated since - unlike Monet - his works never suffer from a
lack of form.
Famous Landscapes by Alfred Sisley
- Misty Morning (1874) oil on canvas, Musee d'Orsay
- Snow at Louveciennes (1878) oil on canvas, Musee d'Orsay, Paris
- Moret Bridge in the Sun (1892) oil on canvas, Private Collection
No 7. Aelbert Cuyp (1620-91)
A Dutch Realist artist, Aelbert Cuyp is one of the most renowned of all
Netherlandish landscape painters. His greatest scenic views - river scenes and
landscapes with placid livestock - reveal great serenity and masterful handling
of glowing light (early morning, or evening sun) in an Italianate style: a sign of
significant Claudean influence. This golden light often catches just the edges

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and rims of vegetation, clouds or animals, with highlights laid on in thick

impasto paint. In this way, Cuyp turned his native Dordrecht into a dream
world encapsulated in the start or end of a perfect day, with an all-pervading
sense of stillness and security, and everything in harmony with Nature. Popular
in Holland, he was greatly appreciated and collected in England.
Famous Landscapes by Aelbert Cuyp
Dordrecht from the North (1650) oil/canvas, Anthony de Rothschild Collection
River Landscape w. Horseman, Peasants (1658) oil, National Gallery, London
No 6. Jean-Baptiste-Camille Corot (1796-1875)
One of the greatest romantic style landscape painters, Jean-Baptiste Corot is
renowned for his unaffected picturesque depiction of nature. His particularly
sensitive treatment of distance, light and form was dependent on tonal values
rather than on drawing and colour, lending the finished composition an air of
timeless romance. Less encumbered by painterly theory, Corot's works are
nevertheless among the world's most popular landscape pictures. A regular
exhibitor at the Parisian Salon from 1827, and a member of the Barbizon
School led by Theodore Rousseau (1812-67), he was immensely influential on
other outdoor artists like Charles-Francois Daubigny (1817-1878), Camille
Pissarro (1830-1903) and Alfred Sisley (1839-1899). He was also an
extraordinarily generous man who spent much of his money on needy artists.
Famous Landscapes by Jean-Baptiste-Camille Corot
- Bridge at Narni (1826) oil paint on canvas, Louvre
- Ville d'Avray (c.1867) oil on canvas, Brooklyn Museum of Art, New York
- Rural Scene (1875) oil on canvas, Musee Toulouse-Lautrec, Albi, France
No 5. Jacob Van Ruisdael (1628-82)
Now considered the greatest of all Dutch Realist landscape artists, the work of
Jacob Van Ruisdael had a huge influence on later European landscape art,
although during his lifetime he was less popular than the Italianate-style
painters. His subjects included windmills, riverscapes, forests, fields, beaches
and seascapes, depicted with unusual emotional feeling, using bold forms,
dense colours and vigorous impastoed brushwork, instead of the usual focus on
tonal values. A pupil of his uncle Salomon Van Ruisdael, Jacob in turn taught
the celebrated Meindert Hobbema (1638-1709), and was much admired by
English masters like Thomas Gainsborough and John Constable, as well as
members of the Barbizon school.
Famous Landscapes by Jacob Van Ruisdal
- Landscape w. Shepherds and Farmers (1665) oil on canvas, Uffizi Gallery
- The Mill at Wijk Near Duurstede (1670) oil on canvas, Rijksmuseum
- Jewish Cemetery at Ouderkerk (1670), Gemaldegalerie Alte Meister, Dresden
No 4. Claude Lorraine (1600-82) (Claude Gellee)
French painter, draughtsman and etcher, active in Rome, who is regarded by
many art historians as the greatest painter of idyllic landscapes in the history
of art. Since pure (that is, secular and unclassical) landscape, like plain still-life
or genre painting, was seen (in 17th century Rome) as lacking in moral
seriousness, Claude Lorrain introduced classical elements and mythological
themes into his compositions, including deities, heroes and saints. In addition,
his chosen environment - the countryside around Rome - was rich in antique

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ruins. These classical Italianate pastoral landscapes were further infused with a
poetic light, which represents his unique contribution to the art of landscape
painting. Claude Lorraine was especially influential on English artists, both
during his lifetime and for two centuries thereafter: John Constable described
him as "the most perfect landscape painter the world ever saw."
Famous Works by Claude Lorraine
- Campus Vaccino in Rome (1636) oil on canvas, Musee du Louvre
- Landscape with the Marriage of Isaac/Rebecca (1648) oil, National Gallery
- Landcape with Tobias and the Angel (1663) oil, Hermitage, St Petersburg
No 3. John Constable (1776-1837)
Ranks alongside Turner as one of the best English landscape painters, not least
for his singular ability to recreate the colours, climate and rustic scenery of the
romantic English countryside, and for his pioneering role in the development of
plein-airism. In contrast to Turner's distinctively interpretive style, John
Constable focused on nature, painting the Suffolk and Hampstead scenery he
knew so well. His spontaneous, fresh compositions were often, however,
careful reconstructions that owed much to his close study of Dutch Realism as
well as Claudean Italianate style works. The renowned artist Henry Fuesli once
commented that the life-like naturalist renditions of Constable always made
him call for his umbrella!
Famous Landscapes by John Constable
- Boatbuilding Near Flatford Mill (1815) oil, Victoria & Albert Museum, London
- The Hay Wain (1821) oil on canvas, National Gallery, London
No 2. Claude Monet (1840-1926)
The greatest modern landscape painter and a giant of French painting, he was
the leading figure of the hugely influential Impressionism movement, to whose
tenets of spontaneous plein-air painting he remained faithful for the rest of his
life. A close friend of Impressionist painters Renoir and Pissarro, his quest for
optical truth - above all in the depiction of light - is exemplified by his series of
canvases portraying the same object in varying light conditions, and at
different times of the day, like his Haystacks (1888 onwards), Poplars (1891
on), Rouen Cathedral (1892 on), and the river Thames (1899 on). This method
culminated in his famous series of Water-lilies (among the most famous
landscape paintings ever) created from 1883 in his garden at Giverny. His last
set of monumental water-lily pictures with their shimmering colours have been
interpreted by several art critics and painters as being an important precursor
to abstract art, and by others as the supreme exemplar of Monet's search for
spontaneous naturalism.
Famous Landscapes by Claude Monet
- Impression, Sunrise (1873) oil on canvas, Musee Marmottan Monet, Paris
- Poppies Near Argenteuil (1873) oil on canvas, Musee d'Orsay
- Haystack in the Morning, Snow Effect (1891) oil, Boston Museum Fine Arts
- Waterlilly Pond (1899) oil on canvas, National Gallery, London
No 1. JMW Turner (1775-1851)
In my opinion, JMW Turner is the greatest ever landscape painter: his unique
style remains enduringly popular. Overshadowed initially by Thomas Girtin,

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Turner worked exclusively in watercolours until the age of 21, Turner's early
style of oil painting was Italianate, rather than Dutch Realist, but his mature
works of pale brilliance did not materialize until after his 1819 sketching tour of
Italy. His unique genius was his ability to capture the differing effect of light in
a revolutionary style of proto-Impressionism verging on abstract
expressionism, making him one of the first genuinely "modern" artists, revered
by Claude Monet as well as 20th century expressionists. The Turner style of
English landscape painting remains, like the frenzied brushwork of Van Gogh,
an instantly recognizable contribution to the history of art. He became a full
member of the Royal Academy at 27, Professor of Linear Perspective at 32, and
Deputy President in 1845. On his death, he left 300 paintings and nearly
20,000 drawings and watercolours to the National Gallery in London.
Famous Landscapes by JMW Turner
- Burning of the House of Lords and Commons (1835) oil, Philadelphia Museum
- The Fighting Temeraire (1839) oil on canvas, National Gallery, London
- Dawn after the Wreck (1840) watercolour, British Museum, London
- Snow Storm: Steamboat off a Harbour's Mouth (1842) oil, Tate Gallery
For a list of the top painters/sculptors, see: Visual Artists: Greatest.
For more biographies of great landscape painters, see: Homepage.

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