Abstract painting of a house with a dark roof and pink walls under a cloudy sky.
New online course

Loosen the Landscape: Land & Sea

with Sam Rudd

Finding, Abstracting & Painting the Landscape

Artist painting abstract landscape scenes in a studio with multiple colorful artworks displayed on walls.
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Lifetime Access | Online Course

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Artist painting and examining abstract landscape artworks in a studio with multiple canvases displayed.

Paint Loose. Suggest, Don't Describe.

You've stood somewhere beautiful, a coastline, a field, a late afternoon sky, and picked up a brush. Then spent the next hour trying to get it right. The lines too careful. The colours too literal.

Sam Rudd's process starts in the opposite direction: loose marks, limited colour, and a gut-feel for what the painting needs next. Suggestion over description. Instinct over control. Happy accidents welcomed

What You'll Experience

You'll step into Sam's countryside studio and follow her complete process — from the first outdoor sketch to a finished series of paintings on paper and canvas. This is process-led learning at its most honest: you'll see Sam make decisions, change her mind, recognise a happy accident, and keep it. The atmosphere is relaxed, the teaching is direct, and by the end you'll have built a full series of your own.

Woman hanging framed abstract painting on white wall next to another painting and a cup on a stool.
Abstract painting of a green landscape with houses, trees, and hills under a pale sky.
Abstract painting of a house with a dark roof and pink walls under a cloudy sky.
Artist in black shirt and jeans painting abstract canvas in studio with landscape photos pinned up.

What You’ll Learn

Impressionist painting of a house near water with sailboat, grassy fields, and cloudy sky.

Why working in a series removes pressure — and how to use it to paint more freely

How to suggest rather than describe — a building, a tree, the edge of the sea — with a single mark

Why colour doesn't need to be realistic — and how muted tones and selective brightness give a painting its atmosphere

How to switch tools constantly and why it keeps the surface alive

How leaving white space — unpainted paper, open areas — can say more than another layer of paint

How to recognise a happy accident and have the courage to keep it

Hand mixing paint with a brush on a palette next to jars and brushes on a wooden table.

What's Inside

Carefully crafted modules that take you inside Sam's complete process — from a first sketch in the landscape to a resolved series of paintings on paper and canvas.

Blonde woman with glasses sitting in art studio with paintbrushes and abstract painting behind her.

Introduction

A warm welcome from Sam — who she is, how she works, and the one question she gets asked most often: how do you make it so loose? This is where that answer begins.

Various paintbrushes held in jars with paintings blurred in the background.

Sam's Creative Approach

Sam shares her artistic philosophy before a brush is lifted. Her journey from 15 years in illustration and textile design into painting. Why she works in series. Why she always keeps music on. Why happy accidents aren't accidents at all.

Woman outdoors painting on a board with a scenic view of hills and a lake in an inset frame.

Gathering Inspiration: Field to Studio

The step most courses skip. Sam goes into the landscape with a sketchbook — showing you what she's actually looking for, how she sketches quickly and intuitively, and how she brings that material back to the studio wall before a single mark of paint is made.

Artist holding two brushes in a studio with paint supplies and canvases behind her.

Tools & Materials

A natural, demystifying walkthrough of everything Sam uses — paper, canvas, a limited palette, and a collection of mark-making tools you mostly already own. The message: less is more, and the tool changes the energy.

Hands mixing beige paint on a palette above abstract paintings with pastel colors on a table.

The Paper Series (Painting Module 1)

The heart of Sam's process. Six sheets of paper, worked simultaneously, in a relaxed studio mindset. Sam shows you how to make the first marks, move between paintings, switch tools every 30 seconds, and let the series find its own momentum.

Person painting abstract soft pastel color blocks on a canvas in a studio.

Series on Canvas: Day 1

Sam opens three canvases — 50×50, 80×80, and 1m×1m — and starts all of them at once. Base layers, colour decisions, first marks, and the physical rhythm of working across a full series. Day 1 ends when the paintings need to dry, not when they feel done.

Artist in a studio painting on a canvas surrounded by landscape artworks on walls.

Returning & Building: Day 2

The most valuable module. Sam returns with fresh eyes, reads each canvas out loud, and makes the decisions that move the paintings from raw to resolved. Transparency vs opacity. Negative space. Finishing marks. Knowing when to stop.

Smiling woman with glasses sitting in front of abstract paintings in an art studio.

Summary & Closing

Sam reflects on the full journey — from landscape to series — and leaves you with the one thing she most wants you to carry forward into your practice.

Meet The Artist

Sam Rudd

Sam Rudd is a painter based in Cheshire whose work sits at the intersection of landscape and abstraction — loose, expressive paintings that feel like a place rather than describe one. The sea, the fields, the shifting light of the English countryside all live inside her canvases, translated through mark, colour, and instinct rather than careful observation.

Before coming to painting, Sam spent fifteen years as an illustrator and textile designer. The move wasn't immediate — it began quietly, painting again just for herself, for pleasure. "I had to change my mindset a lot — to be much more free and loose. It became less about communication and more about expression."

“The more you create, the more confident you become in calling yourself an artist."

That background in illustration and textiles didn't disappear — it became part of the work. The drawing lives beneath every surface she makes. The mark-making carries the rhythm of someone who has spent years thinking about pattern and line.

"How do you make it so loose?" — the question Sam's audience asks most often. This course is the full answer.

This is the first time Sam has brought her complete process — from sketchbook in the field to finished canvas series — into an online course. If you've wanted to loosen your painting and find the feeling in the landscape, this is where you start.

Smiling woman with glasses stands behind table with paintings and a landscape artwork in background.
Person sitting outdoors sketching a landscape in a notebook, surrounded by dry grass.

Who This Is For

Painters who feel their work is getting tight, careful, or overworked — and want to find a freer way in

Students who've always loved landscape but struggle to capture atmosphere, not just accuracy

Artists from illustration, design, or textile backgrounds who are transitioning into painting and want to make the most of what they already know

Anyone who has looked at expressive, semi-abstract work and wondered: how do they actually do that?

Beginners who want to start the right way — with process, not perfection

Whatever your starting point, this course will change how you see the landscape — and how you put it on the canvas.

Abstract painting of a green landscape with houses, trees, and hills under a pale sky.

What’s Included

Lifetime access to all modules and any future updates

Digital course on art titled Loosen the Landscape with Sam Rudd shown on multiple devices with supply and materials lists.
Downloadable materials list so you can get set up before you begin
Three bonus modules — studio tour, monoprinting basics, and Sam's transition from illustration to painting
Access to Arteway's private student community
Ask Sam your questions directly in the course comments

Join Loosen the Landscape

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Normal Price: $147

Today's Price: $67 USD

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100% Satisfaction Guaranteed

100% Satisfaction Guarantee

We're confident you'll love this course. If you give it a try and feel it's not right for you, just contact us within 14 days of purchase and we'll take care of you. Enroll with confidence.

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FREE! Bonus ($105 value)

Included with every order

A bright artist studio with abstract floral paintings, brushes in jars, and wooden chairs.

Studio Tour

$35 value / FREE!

A walkthrough of Sam's working studio — how it's set up for series painting, what's on the walls, what's drying, and how to create a space at home that works for you.

Woman with glasses holds a roll of fabric printed with nature-inspired patterns at a wooden table.

Monoprinting Basics

$35 value / FREE!

An introduction to the most accessible form of printmaking — the monoprint. Sam shows how her printmaking background bridges directly into her painting practice.

Person drawing with green pencil on colorful abstract paintings spread on a table.

Transition from Illustration to Painting

$35 value / FREE!

A candid, personal module about Sam's move from 15 years of illustration and textile design into painting. What she had to unlearn — and what she was glad she already knew. Especially meaningful for students coming from a design or illustration background.

Abstract painting with pink, orange, and green on easel outdoors by a wooden fence and shoreline.

FAQ

Sam works with a limited palette — plus a selection of brushes, a palette knife, and simple mark-making tools like cardboard and a credit card. She'll walk you through everything in Module 4. You don't need expensive or specialised materials to get started.

No. Sam's approach is process-led and intuitive, which makes it accessible to complete beginners — but the depth of her teaching means experienced painters will find just as much to work with. If you can hold a brush, you can do this course.

All modules are pre-recorded and available to watch at any time. You can work at your own pace, revisit modules as often as you like, and pause to paint whenever you need to.

Lifetime access. Once enrolled, the course is yours to return to whenever you want — whether that's next week or in two years.

We offer a 14-day satisfaction guarantee. If you're not happy with the course for any reason within the first 14 days, contact us and we'll refund you in full — no questions asked.

Especially so. Sam spent 15 years as an illustrator and textile designer before painting full-time, and Bonus Module B3 is dedicated entirely to that transition. She'll talk you through what carried over, what she had to unlearn, and how to make the most of what you already know.