Twin peaks with a saddle of snow between themWhite, gray, slate, sky blue. Join two triangles with a shallow curve and keep the snow whitest there.
One peak, one knife stroke of sun and one of shadowWhite, gold, violet. Pull gold down the sunny side and violet down the other, and do not blend them.
Peak and its upside-down twin meeting at the shorelineBlue, white, gray. Paint the peak, then repeat it upside down below a level line.
Five ridges stacked, each paler and bluer than the lastNavy, blue, pale blue, white. Mix a little more white into each ridge as you move up the canvas.
Golden ridges at sunset, the nearest one darkestGold, orange, rust, dark brown. Start with the gold sky and deepen each ridge toward the bottom edge.
Green foothills in morning fog, only their tops showingGreen, gray green, white. Paint each hill, then scrub watery white along its base before the next goes on.
Hawk gliding above folded ranges, tiny against the hazeSage, teal, pale blue, black. Add the bird last as one small black check-mark shape.
Hazy blue hills behind one line of dark pinesBlue gray, pale blue, dark green, white. Dab the pines last along the nearest ridge with the tip of a flat brush.
One-tube study: a single blue, lightened ridge by ridgeUltramarine blue, white. Use the blue alone in front and add white for every ridge behind it.
Rain shower dragging a gray veil over the far rangeGray, slate, olive, white. Pull slanted streaks down from the cloud with a damp flat brush.
Sawtooth ridgeline cut in two by a band of low cloudSlate, gray, white, pale yellow. Sponge a soft white band across the middle once the ridge is dry.
Terraced hillsides stepping down into cloudGreen, yellow green, gray, white. Paint the terraces as stacked curved bands and fade the lowest into white.
Three gray ridges, a strip of bare canvas as fog betweenCharcoal, gray, pale gray. Leave a narrow strip of bare canvas above each ridge so fog seems to lie between them.
Three purple ridges fading into a peach skyPurple, lilac, peach, white. Paint the far ridge first in pale lilac and darken the mix for each nearer one.
Valley of mist between two dark slopes at sunriseOrange, peach, plum, white. Leave the valley pale and frame it with one dark plum slope on each side.
Snow peaks and alpenglow 12
Frozen peak under a small winter sun with a haloWhite, gray, pale yellow, pale blue. Paint the sun as a small pale disc and ring it once with a dry brush.
Glacier tongue winding down between two rock wallsWhite, pale blue, gray, brown. Paint the ice as a curving pale ribbon with fine blue cracks across it.
Lone white summit, a plain triangle on flat blueWhite, blue, gray. Paint a white triangle and shade its left side gray down a zigzag line.
Long cobalt shadows raking down an afternoon snow slopeWhite, pale blue, cobalt. Pull long blue shadows down the slope, all slanting the same way.
Orange alpenglow on a rock face above dark firsOrange, rust, dark green, plum. Paint the rock face warm and the trees as a dark saw edge below it.
Peak catching first light while stars still showRose, navy, white, gray. Glaze watery rose over the dry white summit and dot a few stars above it.
Pink alpenglow on the summit, the valley already in shadowPink, peach, violet, navy. Paint only the top third of the peak pink and the rest violet.
Plume of snow streaming sideways off a windy summitWhite, gray, blue. Drag a nearly dry brush sideways from the top so the white breaks up.
Ski tracks carving an S down a white bowlWhite, pale blue, gray. Paint two parallel pale blue lines snaking down the slope.
Snowy pine in front of a pale far peakWhite, pale blue, dark green. Paint the peak pale, then the pine dark with white dabbed on each bough.
Three dark cones with scalloped white capsCharcoal, white, pale blue. Paint each cap as a scalloped shape with a few short drips down the cone.
Twin peaks with a saddle of snow between themWhite, gray, slate, sky blue. Join two triangles with a shallow curve and keep the snow whitest there.
A mountain mirrored in a lake 12
Duck paddling through the mirror image, rings spreadingBlue, white, brown, gray. Paint three half rings behind the duck, over the mirrored peak.
Gold larches ringing a tarn under a gray cragGold, gray, teal, white. Dab gold along the shore with a sponge and repeat it as a blur in the water.
Lake so calm you could turn the canvas overNavy, white, pale blue. Keep sky and water the same blue and both peaks the same size.
Mirror image ruffled into stripes by a breezeBlue, white, slate. Break the mirrored peak into short level dashes with gaps of water between.
Mirrored mountain sliced by the wake of one red canoeTeal, white, gray, red. Mirror the mountain, then drag a V of pale lines through it behind a small red canoe.
Moonlit peak over a lake, a path of white dashes betweenNavy, white, silver gray, black. Paint a column of short white dashes down the water under the moon.
Orange tent on a pebble shore below a doubled peakOrange, gray, blue, white. Paint the tent as one small orange triangle, the brightest thing on the canvas.
Peak and its upside-down twin meeting at the shorelineBlue, white, gray. Paint the peak, then repeat it upside down below a level line.
Pines along the waterline, stamped again in the lakeDark green, blue, white, gray. Stamp the pines above the line and again, shorter and softer, below it.
Pink peak doubled in a violet lake at sunrisePink, violet, peach, white. Paint both peaks pink and glaze watery violet over the lower one.
Shallows with three big stones, the summit mirrored beyondBrown, gray, blue, white. Paint three stones large at the bottom edge so the lake seems to run back.
Wooden dock pointing straight at a mirrored summitBrown, blue, white, gray. Narrow the dock as it runs away so it aims at the peak.
Peaks with a palette knife 12
Broken ice on a mountain stream in knife dabsWhite, teal, gray. Dab small flat patches of white and leave teal gaps between them.
Buttery white summit against a smooth blended skyWhite, pink, blue. Blend the sky with a brush, then lay the snow on thickly with the knife.
Fall hillside in knife dabs of red, orange and goldRed, orange, gold, dark green. Dab the colors side by side with the knife tip and leave them unmixed.
Jagged skyline tapped in with the knife tipGray, navy, white. Tap the tip along the ridge for teeth, then pull each one down a little.
Knife-cut rock faces in three earth colorsUmber, sienna, ocher, white. Press and pull the flat of the knife downhill for each plane of rock.
Knife-spread foothills in two greens under a flat skyGreen, yellow green, pale blue. Spread each hill in one pass, like butter on toast.
One peak, one knife stroke of sun and one of shadowWhite, gold, violet. Pull gold down the sunny side and violet down the other, and do not blend them.
Scree slope scraped back until the canvas weave showsGray, brown, cream. Scrape most of the paint off again so the weave makes the gravel.
Snow scraped down a dark peak with one knife pullBlack, white, blue. Load the knife edge with white and drag it lightly down the dry dark peak so it skips.
Storm cloud in knife swirls pressing on a ridgeCharcoal, gray, white. Twist the knife as you spread so the cloud curls.
Thread of a waterfall scratched down a gray cliffGray, umber, white. Scratch one fine line down the wet rock with the knife edge and fill it white.
Three white knife wedges pulled up on a black canvasBlack, white, gray. Start on a black canvas and pull three white wedges up to points.
Moon and stars over a ridge 12
Blue hour ridge with the first planet above itBlue, violet, peach, white. Blend peach up into blue and place one bright white dot over the ridge.
Crescent over snow peaks, the snow painted pale blueNavy, white, pale blue. Paint the snow pale blue, not white, so the moon stays the brightest thing.
Green northern lights rippling over a white ridgeBlack, green, white, teal. Pull the green upward from a sharp lower edge with a soft dry brush.
Meteor streak above a single pine on a bare ridgeNavy, white, black. Pull one fine white line with a liner brush, heavier at the leading end.
Milky band of stars arching over a dark rangeBlack, navy, violet, white. Sponge a soft violet band, then dot stars along it with a cotton swab.
Moon halo ringing the sky above twin summitsNavy, white, gray. Paint the moon, then one pale ring around it with a nearly dry brush.
Moon the size of a jar lid, half sunk behind black cragsNavy, white, black, pale yellow. Trace a jar lid for the moon and let the ridge cut across its lower edge.
One lit cabin window below a huge moonlit peakNavy, white, yellow, black. Keep the yellow window tiny so the mountain feels vast.
One triangle peak under swab-dotted starsIndigo, white, black. Dot large and small stars with the two ends of a cotton swab.
Star trails circling above a dark summitNavy, white, black. Paint short white arcs around one point above the peak, all curving the same way.
Summit standing above a moonlit sea of cloudNavy, white, gray, black. Sponge the cloud tops white along the lower third and shade their undersides gray.
Tiny campfire at the foot of a starlit rangeBlack, navy, orange, white. Paint the fire as one orange dot with a soft orange scrub around it.
How it works
Distance does half the work in a mountain scene: far ridges lose contrast and drift toward the blue of the sky, so each layer only needs a paler mix than the one in front of it.
Read the full guide
Mountain canvas painting ideas, back to front
Paint the farthest ridge first and palest, then deepen the mix a little for each ridge nearer you. One-tube study: a single blue, lightened ridge by ridge needs one blue and white. Let each layer dry before the next and the edges stay crisp.
Snow with a palette knife
A palette knife has a blunt, bendy steel blade made for mixing paint and for laying it on. Load its edge with white and drag it lightly down a dry dark peak: the paint skips and leaves broken snow. Snow scraped down a dark peak with one knife pull is that single move.
The easiest sit under More filters, Level: 22 scenes in flat shapes and few colors.
Questions and answers
What are simple mountain painting ideas for a first canvas?
Lone white summit, a plain triangle on flat blue is a triangle with one shaded side, and Three purple ridges fading into a peach sky is three bands of one color. Neither needs a drawing first.
Are there oil painting ideas for beginners with mountains?
The palette knife group suits oils. Oil paint dries slowly and holds a thick stroke, which is what impasto asks for. Buttery white summit against a smooth blended sky lays the snow on with a knife over a brushed sky.
What is alpenglow, and how do I paint it?
Alpenglow is the reddish glow on mountains when the sun sits at or just under the horizon. Paint only the summit pink and leave everything lower in violet, as in Pink alpenglow on the summit, the valley already in shadow.
How do I paint a mountain reflected in a lake?
Paint the mountain, then repeat it upside down under a level shoreline and break it with a few level dashes for ripples. Lake so calm you could turn the canvas over leaves the ripples out altogether.