Learn how to draw realistic tree trunks and branches with essential tips from “Le dessin de paysage” (1889). Discover exercises to improve your landscape drawing skills, focusing on structure, light, and texture for dynamic compositions.

Improve your landscape drawings by mastering the techniques for drawing leaves, grass, shrubs and bushes. Learn key exercises from Le dessin de paysage to enhance your plein air painting and build confidence in capturing natural details.

In the pursuit of mastering landscape painting, it's easy to overlook the critical role that foundational drawing skills play in improving your work. Whether you’re a landscape artist, a painter working in the studio, or a plein air painter capturing scenes outdoors, understanding how to structure and simplify your compositions through drawing is key to creating stronger, more confident paintings.

One of the best resources for developing these essential skills comes from an unexpected source: a 19th-century French drawing book titled Le dessin de paysage. This hidden gem offers a structured, step-by-step approach to landscape drawing that remains relevant today, providing artists with timeless lessons that can elevate their painting practice.

Le dessin de paysage focuses on developing critical drawing skills, teaching artists how to see and simplify their subject before applying paint. By mastering the basics of drawing, you create a solid foundation upon which the rest of your painting is built.

For landscape painters and plein air artists, this is especially important. When you're out in nature, working with changing light and fleeting moments, having the ability to quickly sketch out a scene is invaluable. Drawing allows you to establish the key elements of your composition, ensuring that your painting remains strong even when the environment around you is shifting.

Mastering Plein Air Painting: My Strategic Approach to Capturing Colorado’s Landscapes

Plein air painting in oil is both a challenging and deeply rewarding experience. In this post, I share my go-to strategy for simplifying the complexities of painting outdoors. Learn how I use a unique three-color palette to capture the beauty of daytime skies, explore different compositions through quick thumbnail sketches, and develop those sketches into finished masterpieces. Whether you’re an experienced painter or just beginning, these tips can help elevate your outdoor painting process. Check out the full post and see some of my completed works!