Whether it’s summer near you or you’re dreaming of blue skies and sandy toes, take a dip with these 17 beach art ideas to try.

Image: bozhena_fuchs

Put those stunning, rich oils to use and add a nautical touch to a wave break like this ocean art idea! Adding a boat will not only bring life to a painting, but it can also be a great way to practice perspective.

Explore a new medium and learn a few tricks and techniques too! H20 water mixable oils are great for a beach landscape, they will give you that smooth, buttery texture like regular oils but they’ll dry a lot quicker. Our beach landscape project will teach you how to paint a realistic beach wave in H20 water mixable oil paint and we’ll give you a few tips and tricks along the way to, win win!

Image: jradartdesign

If you’re lucky enough to be able to paint at the beach, paint en plein air and try a colour study. Lay down your colours first, before adding in highlights and shadows on the shore and finer details like the waves and see what you can come up with.

Image: mar_oceanart

Try painting a wave with watercolours like this ocean art idea. Reach for some masking fluid to keep your white paper white, so you can focus on creating an overarching wave, before you remove it to show off your crisp whites where the wave naturally breaks.

If you don’t have a lot of time up your sleeve (let’s be real, who does?), or if you want to take a quick trip to the beach, try this quick beach art idea. This project will teach you how to create a quick and easy beach painting in acrylic, so you can create and still have time to hit the surf.

Image: pauravi

Challenge yourself and try an under the sea watercolour. Think coral, jellyfish, sea horses, octopus, fish, sharks and whales, the choice is yours! Use masking fluid to keep your whites white like this, where the coral remains uncoloured.

Image: elysian.vibes

Capture golden hour like this gouache beach art idea. Experiment with oranges, peaches and blues like this and paint in your sketchbook while enjoying the view or try your hand at painting on a circular canvas or board.

Don’t limit yourself, explore a whole range of colours like this beach art idea. This beach art project includes a whole spectrum of colours and shows the sun setting onto a breaking wave and the best part? We’ve broken down the steps for you, so you can follow along with us and soon you’ll have a rainbow wave all for yourself.

Image: blendzartworks

Venture out of your comfort zone and give an abstract ocean art idea like this a whirl. Replace realism details for dashes and bright stripes of colours then watch as they all come together to make up a fun beach inspired work.

Image: jamietablason

If you’re in need of some beach inspo that’s a little more than waves, try a lifesaving tower or use a lighthouse as your beacon of inspiration. This work of a surf lifesaving tower painted in gouache, is a new take on beach art idea.

Paint like the Impressionists and explore light with this ocean inspired art idea. We have a handy lesson that will teach you how to use these techniques for yourself and end up with an acrylic ocean sunset, check it out here.

Image: amira.paints

Swap your paint brushes for a palette knife and see what happens! Create sweeping skies and rough seas with a palette knife or add some texture and dip into impasto to add dimension like this beach landscape.

Image: carlapennant

Another stunning beach art idea using oil pastels, this tropical creation screams summer and reminds us of summer sunsets spent on the beach. Have a play with baby oil on a cotton stick to blend your oil pastels together.

Image: mutlu.artstudio

Add found objects to your beach artworks to create a third dimension and add a whole new level to your works like this idea. Think shells, shrubs, flowers, rocks or found objects and play with perspective and scale.

Image: jasminepomierski.art

You don’t need to paint to create, try a collage like this unique beach art idea. Use scraps of paper and collage your very own beachscape. Think irregular shapes to piece together waves, shore lines, skies and greenery and make something totally unique.

Image: artbymissk

Dust off the oils and try an impressionist-style beach landscape like this idea. Use choppy brush strokes to show light and add a feeling of movement to your work.

Image: thepouringgallery

If you’re looking for something more abstract or just wanting to throw a bit of paint around, try an ocean inspired pour painting instead. Add silicone oil to your pouring and create large cells that will look like the ocean swell. Never tried silicone oil before? Never fear, we have a handy DIY for creating cells with silicone oil here.

We hope that you feel inspired to create your very own beach art! Try these ideas for yourself and #montmarteart or tag us @montmarteart on Instagram or Facebook, we’d love to see what you create.