Nature Art and Wellbeing

Nature. What do you think of when you read that? Boring or magical? Something to be controlled or something to leave alone to admire her wildness? 

 If you’re anything like me, you’ll love nature and her wild side, letting weeds do their thing (because they are, after all, just flowers. But flowers that some don’t want in manicured lawns.) You’ll love hearing rain on leaves or the roof, you’ll love the sky at dawn or sunset, you grow wildflowers in your garden, you love the sound of waves on the shore and the signs of the seasons turning… 

Whatever you think of nature and all her aspects, she is good for us. 

It has been shown in numerous studies that nature has a beneficial effect on our wellbeing, soothing our nervous system. Green is a hugely calming colour to humans, probably because we spent thousands of years living within nature, as part of her in the forests and plains. As I said in my last post, the human eye can distinguish more shades of green than any other colour because the rods and cones in our eyes developed in that environment.

Neuroscientists and psychologists have looked at the effect that nature art has on the human mind. They found that natural sights induce positive states in people’s psychology and aid recovery in people who have had operations. It has also been discovered that nature helps with creativity and problem solving, improves focus, it decreases anxiety and stress and it’s comforting and relaxing. Simply put, spending time in nature is good for us. 

The wonderful thing is, images of the natural world are just as good. 

Artworks showing nature are as beneficial to our wellbeing as the real thing and spending some time looking at nature art can have the same creative and relaxing effects. Having nature art on your walls can help you remember to take some time out of your day to just be, to stop the constant whirr of your mind. 

I think it’s a good mindful practice to use a piece of nature art, whether it be a landscape, a vase of flowers or an abstract, as a trigger, so that every time you see it, you’re reminded to take some deep breaths and reconnect with yourself. Do you have nature art that helps you do this? Let me know in the comments or on social media (links below). 

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