Designing a Foreground
from Matt Smith
When you’re creating a landscape painting, the foreground is like the opening scene of a movie. It’s the part that grabs attention and pulls people into your artwork. A good foreground doesn’t just sit there; it helps guide the viewer’s eye and makes the whole scene feel connected and believable.
This idea is shown beautifully in Carl Rungius’s painting "Days of the Bison Millions." In this painting, Rungius focuses on one main bison in the front and paints it with lots of detail so it really stands out. The other bison in the herd fade into the background and become less detailed as they move farther away. This creates a feeling of depth, as if you could step right into the painting. Rungius uses the shape of the land and perspective—how things look smaller and closer together as they get farther away—to make the scene feel natural.
The Days of the Bison Millions by Carl Rungius
One mistake artists often make is painting bushes or trees in the foreground as if they were spaced evenly, like decorations on a cake. But nature isn’t that neat. Plants usually grow in clusters and overlap each other, forming bigger shapes. To make your foreground look realistic, try grouping your elements together, like Rungius did with his bison. These clusters will help the viewer’s eye move naturally through the painting.
You don’t need to paint every detail to make a painting feel complete. In fact, if you explain everything, there’s no room for the viewer’s imagination. Instead, focus on painting one or two important details in the foreground, like a bush or a rock, and let the rest fade into softer shapes and colors. For example, if you paint one detailed bush up close, the bushes behind it don’t need as much detail. They will still feel real if their colors and shadows match the scene.
It’s easy to get carried away trying to include every little thing in a painting, but it’s better to simplify. Think about what parts of the foreground are really important and what parts you can leave out. For example, you might start with detailed shapes in the very front of the painting and let them gradually blend together into larger, simpler shapes as they move farther away. This mimics the way we see things in real life and makes the painting feel more natural.
“A good foreground doesn’t just sit there; it helps guide the viewer’s eye and makes the whole scene feel connected and believable. ”
Perspective—how objects look smaller and closer together as they move farther away—isn’t just for roads and buildings. It also works for things like bushes, grass, and rocks. Paying attention to how these elements recede into the distance will make your painting feel like it has real depth. Even in flat lighting, where there isn’t much shadow, you can use highlights and shading to give objects a three-dimensional look.
Look at the painting below, for example, and imagine you were painting something similar. In the foreground, you might paint one detailed bush to anchor the scene. Around it, the other plants could be painted with softer edges and less detail, but in similar colors. The creek could lead the viewer’s eye toward the mountain, with shadows and highlights showing how the land gently slopes and curves. By keeping the foreground simple but meaningful, you make the entire painting feel more alive and engaging.
From Matt Smith
A great painting gives the viewer room to imagine. By balancing detailed parts with areas that are more abstract, you let people fill in the gaps with their own ideas. Carl Rungius’s work shows that you don’t need to paint every blade of grass or leaf on a tree to create something amazing. Instead, focus on making the scene feel believable and inviting. Think about how the foreground connects to the rest of the painting and how it guides the viewer’s eye. Simplify where you can, highlight the most important parts, and trust your audience to fill in the rest. When you do, your paintings will leave a lasting impression.
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