Paint an easy textured abstract landscape

Hi there! I'm the social media coordinator here at Mont Mont. And today I'll be showing you how to paint an easy, textured, abstract landscape using impasto and acrylics.

I studied fine arts at university and have always had a love for all things creative, but I'm by no means a professional artist. So, I hope this tutorial inspires other beginners out there to step out of their comfort zone, give it a go and have fun along the way.

I chose to paint an abstract landscape, as it gives you the freedom to play with different shapes and forms to make it your own interpretation.

Texture and pastel palettes are really on trend right now, so I decided to combine the two for a bit of fun. But feel free to use any colour scheme to make the piece uniquely yours.

Start by drawing the abstract landscape on canvas using a HB pencil. I chose a series of organic shapes to make up my abstract landscape. Remember, though, if you make a mistake, you can always erase it. 

Once you're happy with the design, you can move on to the fun part – painting!  Paint the background sky area first by mixing Pink with Titanium White and some Impasto. 

Once you're happy with the pastel pink tone, take the largest brush in the pack and apply the paint thickly over the sky.

When painting each area, I use light brush strokes to build up the texture. I also found it easier to switch between medium and small brushes and feel around the edges of the shape before painting the middle.

Once you've finished the sky, move on to painting the inside of the big hill in the foreground. Mix Yellow Ochre, Titanium White and Impasto to make a pastel beige colour.

Paint the top of the smaller hill in the background with this colour, then move on to the smaller hill in the background with this colour. And then the outer semi-circle towards the left of the canvas. 

Mix a little more Burnt Sienna to the mix on your palette to make a pastel brown. Use this colour to fill in the smaller hill on the left of the canvas and the hill on the right of the canvas.

As I was painting, I decided to make some of the shapes slightly bigger than I had drawn. Always remember, it's perfectly fine to colour outside of the lines.

Mix Sap Green, Titanium White and Impasto to make a pastel mint green shade. Use this colour to paint in the largest semicircle on the hill, the second semi-circle towards the left of the canvas and the outer ring around the hill to the right of the canvas.

Squeeze some Cerise, Titanium White and Impasto to create a pastel pink slightly darker than the sky. Use this to fill in the semi-circle on the top of the large hill, the two semi circles towards the left of the canvas and the semi-circle to the right.

Mix some Lemon Yellow, Titanium White and Impasto to create a pastel yellow. This will be used to paint in the sun.

Once you're happy with the background, leave it to dry completely. This could take a few hours, depending on how thick you've applied the paint.

Now it's time to add some detail over the top. I've used Titanium White and Lamp Black to create a contrast against the pastel shades. 

Take Titanium White and a small flat brush to create a line along the edge of the large hill in the foreground. Outline the small pink semicircle on the large hill. Outline the pastel green semicircle to the right of the canvas. Take a smaller brush to paint some lines at the bottom of the hill.

Use Lamp Black and a small brush to outline the top of the hill in the background. 

Add some organic shaped rectangles to the hill on the right of the canvas.

Finally, draw a series of lines to the left of the sun. The lines became slightly thicker than I was intending, but as Bob Ross famously said, "We don't make mistakes, just happy little accidents."

Outline the two hills to the left of the canvas. Add a series of thin lines to the inside of the tall hill on the left. 

Using the finest brush in the pack, paint a series of small arches to the top of the hill in the centre of the canvas. 

I ended up adding a thin drop shadow to each line to make the black less harsh.

And you're all done!

I hope you enjoyed this tutorial and feel inspired to start painting even if you've never picked up a paintbrush before. We can't wait to see what you've come up with, so be sure to tag us @montmarteart on Instagram and Facebook.