Artists are influenced by a variety of factors that show reflection in the works they create. They express their emotions and feelings in a visual way because they are appreciative of what they see; hence the environment they see every day -whether being natural or manmade- can be a major influence for many artists. Eugene von Guerard (traditionalist), Howard Arkley (modernist) and Andy Goldsworthy (post-modernist) are three examples of artists from three different time periods that are influenced by the physical environment around them.
Eugene von Guerard (1811- 1901) was born in Italy and trained there as an artist, and later studied landscape painting in Germany. Von Guerard interests excluding art involved exploring, such as taking long treks in Australia and New Zealand, and it was on these trips that he created finely detailed pencil drawings of the environment around him which he later used as the basis for his paintings. Von Guerard expressed environment by the feelings it evoked from him whether that being awe or terror, and specifically focused on the colouring and lighting. His paintings are also known for being astonishingly detailed. Von Guerard predominately worked in oil painting which was a traditional aspect in the art world at that time.
Von Guerard can be seen as a romantic artist- who takes major influence from the nature around him and the grandeur and beauty that comes with it. He investigates developments in colonial art, such as issues with isolation and parochialism, as well as European traditions. Von guerard was an individual who contributed to the movement that effectively drifted from only painting English landscapes, however he used that tradition to influence his own works. Artists that influenced his personal style of painting include Claude Lorraine, Nicolas Poussin, and Salvator Rosa. In 1870 von Guerard was appointed first Master of the School of Painting at the National Gallery of Victoria,