What Inspires Me to Create: Banff, Nature, and the Spirit of the Past.

Sometimes, a journey brings us more than beautiful memories. It opens a new door in our creative lives and changes the way we see the world.

My visit to Banff was one of those experiences.

I was captivated by the magnificent mountain peaks, the lakes, and the extraordinary beauty of the natural landscape. There was something deeply moving about being surrounded by these powerful mountains and peaceful waters. The landscape seemed to hold a story of its own — something ancient, timeless, and quietly present in every rock, every reflection, and every distant peak.

During my time there, I also had the pleasure of making a new friend. It reminded me that travel is not only about discovering new places, but also about the unexpected connections we make along the way. Sometimes, these encounters become part of the experience itself, adding another layer of meaning to the memories we carry home.

When I returned, I found myself looking at landscape painting differently.

I began a new series of oil landscapes, exploring a direction that felt a little different from my previous work. I wanted to move beyond simply capturing the appearance of a place. I wanted to express the connection I felt with nature and the spirit of the past — something that seemed to exist within the landscape itself.

The mountains and lakes of Banff became a source of inspiration, but also an invitation to explore deeper feelings through my art. I began thinking about the passage of time, the stories held by the natural world, and the quiet presence of places that have existed long before us.

There is something humbling about standing before a mountain that has witnessed countless seasons, or looking across a lake that reflects the same sky that generations before us once saw. These landscapes remind us that we are part of something much larger than our own lives. Nature holds a sense of continuity, mystery, and belonging that I wanted to explore on canvas.

                                                  Maintains Majesty, oil on canvas, 22"x 28"

Working with oil paints allows me to approach these ideas through colour, texture, layers, and atmosphere. Each painting becomes an opportunity to interpret what I remember and what I feel, rather than simply recreate what I saw. I can search for the mood of a landscape, the weight of a mountain, the stillness of water, or the subtle feeling that something from the past remains present in the natural world.

This new series represents a shift in my artistic journey. It has encouraged me to look more deeply, trust my intuition, and allow personal experiences to influence the direction of my work.

You can see my art journey on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/elizabethelkinartist