Background, Scenic and Environment Art
Background and Environment art can be used across many industries. Whether it's used to reconstruct ancient environments, fantasy worlds or as backdrops to theatre or animation it always varies enormously.
I have included below some examples of the iterations and stages, which sometimes are used to determine a final piece.
This piece shows the process stages involved in creating the final background. The foundation stage uses linework to establish perspective, composition, and key set elements. Then flat base colours are dropped in to define each object and separate elements from one another, establishing the local colour palette.
From there, texture and material detail are layered onto the flats — wood grain, fabric folds, the treasure map's aged paper — followed by prop and set dressing, where additional elements are introduced to fill out the story of the space. Finally, adding the lighting ties everything together — lantern glow, cast shadows and rim lighting on key props — shifting the piece from a flat illustration into an immersive, atmospheric environment.
Linework is used to establish perspective, composition, and key architectural elements, drawing the eye through the space and establishing a strong sense of depth and scale. Even at this early stage, the line work carries its own atmosphere — sketchy, weathered marks and a warm, aged tone give the scene a sense of history and age before any colour or lighting is introduced.
This piece shows the ideation stage. A series of colour palettes is explored first, testing different combinations of colours and tones to establish the mood before any composition is settled on. Each palette is then used on a set of small, rough thumbnail studies to see how the colours read across different compositions. This rapid exploration allows multiple atmospheric directions to be compared side by side before committing to a final composition, ensuring the colour and mood are locked in early. The strongest palette and composition are then carried forward and refined into the final painted piece, expanding the small-scale thumbnail into a fully realised icy landscape with a stronger sense of scale, depth, and atmosphere.
This piece shows a space background — two planets set against a vibrant nebula of reds, magentas, and blues. Strong backlighting from the star between them creates dramatic contrast, giving the scene an otherworldly yet plausible sense of depth and atmosphere.
This piece shows the value and colour exploration stage. Grayscale value studies are used first to establish depth, composition, and silhouette, without the distraction of colour. Once the values are locked in, quick colour variants are tested to explore different moods and lighting directions before committing to a final palette. The strongest direction is then carried forward into the fully painted piece.
