Art has been around for centuries and although the early forms of art could hardly be called landscape paintings, there is evidence that early art was based upon the natural environment. Figures pertaining to be trees or hillsides often featured in the earliest forms of art, although it is difficult to say with any conviction that this is definitely what they are.
Early evidence
The first pieces of art that were pure landscape paintings and didn’t have any people featuring in them at all date from around 1500BC and were found in frescoes in Minoan Greece. The Egyptians often produced landscape artwork of hunting scenes, but because the focus is on the hunter or the animal, these could not really be classed as landscape paintings.
Roman influence
Both the Romans and early Chinese traditions often encouraged the production of grand landscape paintings, with the Chinese specializing in waterfalls and fruit gardens and the Romans often focusing on lakes, the ocean and rivers. In the West landscape paintings were created since Roman times but were not really popular until the 19th century. However, in the East landscape art was the most popular form of art throughout history, with the Chinese expressing their awe and respect for the natural world through the creation of beautiful landscapes.
Modern twists
Landscapes were often seen as early as the 14th ce3ntury, although these were usually done for fun as the market at the time demanded portrait paintings much more so than pictures of the natural environment.
Landscape paintings really took off during the 19th Century and the painting styles evolved from the very pure landscapes of the 15th century by the likes of Da Vinci and Durer into the more modern impressionist paintings which remain popular to this day. World famous artists such as Van Gogh and Monet created engaging and fascinating landscape paintings using creative techniques to express more the way they felt about the scene than precisely how it looked. Since the period since WWI, a number of artists have continued to develop the landscape style, with the likes of Hockney, Katz and Doig typifying this modern era.
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