Calming Paintings for a Nursery

Light, softly colored paintings that lower the volume of a room. Nursery paintings are chosen for softness: animals and birds, gardens and meadows, boats on calm water, and children at play, all in light palettes with low saturation. Here are 95 paintings for a nursery, each light in tone and soft in color, with works by Camille Pissarro, Pierre-Auguste Renoir and John Singer Sargent.

All 205 paintings for a nursery

A City Park, William Merritt Chase 24 × 36 in landscape print (61 × 91 cm), centered 51¼ in from the floor, 8 in above the console table. Drawn to scale on a 12 × 8 ft wall.

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Showing 1 to 48 of 95 calming paintings

Small painting of woman in pink and black sitting on park bench.

William Merritt Chase A City Park, c. 1887 Art Institute of Chicago

A Monumental Portrait of a Monkey, India, c. 1705–1710, opaque watercolor and gold on paper

India A Monumental Portrait of a Monkey, c. 1705–1710 Art Institute of Chicago

Garden View, Brooklyn, Fidelia Bridges, ca. 1867, watercolor and gouache, with traces of graphite underdrawing, on tan hot-pressed wove paper

Fidelia Bridges Garden View, Brooklyn, ca. 1867 The Met

At seascape rendered in pastel tones. At right, boats line a pink shore underneath a tall cliff. At left, a single red sailboat floats in blue water.

Claude Monet Étretat: The Beach and the Falaise d'Amont, 1885 Art Institute of Chicago

View of Genoa, Camille Corot, 1834, oil on paper, mounted on canvas

Camille Corot View of Genoa, 1834 Art Institute of Chicago

Terrace and Observation Deck at the Moulin de Blute-Fin, Montmartre, Vincent van Gogh, Early 1887, oil on canvas, mounted on pressboard

Vincent van Gogh Terrace and Observation Deck at the Moulin de Blute-Fin, Montmartre, Early 1887 Art Institute of Chicago

Poppy Field (Giverny), Claude Monet, 1890–91, oil on canvas

Claude Monet Poppy Field (Giverny), 1890–91 Art Institute of Chicago

The Place du Havre, Paris, Camille Pissarro, 1893, oil on canvas

Camille Pissarro The Place du Havre, Paris, 1893 Art Institute of Chicago

Pushing for Rail, Thomas Eakins, 1874, oil on canvas

Thomas Eakins Pushing for Rail, 1874 The Met

Landscape with Goatherd, John Singer Sargent, 1890–1891, oil on canvas

John Singer Sargent Landscape with Goatherd, 1890–1891 The Met

A Cowherd at Valhermeil, Auvers-sur-Oise, Camille Pissarro, 1874, oil on canvas

Camille Pissarro A Cowherd at Valhermeil, Auvers-sur-Oise, 1874 The Met

The Public Garden at Pontoise, Camille Pissarro, 1874, oil on canvas

Camille Pissarro The Public Garden at Pontoise, 1874 The Met

A Washerwoman at Eragny, Camille Pissarro, 1893, oil on canvas

Camille Pissarro A Washerwoman at Eragny, 1893 The Met

Poplars, Eragny, Camille Pissarro, 1895, oil on canvas

Camille Pissarro Poplars, Eragny, 1895 The Met

The Garden of the Tuileries on a Winter Afternoon, Camille Pissarro, 1899, oil on canvas

Camille Pissarro The Garden of the Tuileries on a Winter Afternoon, 1899 The Met

The Garden of the Tuileries on a Spring Morning, Camille Pissarro, 1899, oil on canvas

Camille Pissarro The Garden of the Tuileries on a Spring Morning, 1899 The Met

Camille Pissarro The Garden of the Tuileries on a Winter Afternoon, 1899 The Met

The Gardener, Georges Seurat, 1882–83, oil on wood

Georges Seurat The Gardener, 1882–83 The Met

In shades of mint, laurel, and eucalyptus green, the head and shoulders of a chubby baby fill this vertical portrait painting.

Vincent van Gogh Roulin's Baby, 1888 National Gallery of Art

At least one rowboat occupied by two people floats on a lake, which is surrounded by lush green vegetation in this vertical landscape painting.

Berthe Morisot Girl in a Boat with Geese, c. 1889 National Gallery of Art

A tree with emerald-green leaves and laden with white blossoms grows in a dirt field, and is silhouetted against a vibrant blue sky in this horizontal landscape painting. The scene is loosely painted with visible dabs and strokes.

Camille Pissarro Orchard in Bloom, Louveciennes, 1872 National Gallery of Art

A woman bends double to tend a garden that stretches before us in front of two houses in this horizontal landscape painting.

Camille Pissarro The Artist's Garden at Eragny, 1898 National Gallery of Art

Painted in mostly in jewel tones of topaz and aquamarine blue, and sage, spring, and pine green, a meadow is enclosed by a wooden fence, against a landscape of gently rolling hills under a vibrant sky in this horizontal painting.

Alfred Sisley Meadow, 1875 National Gallery of Art

River Scene, Asher Brown Durand, 1854, oil on canvas

Asher Brown Durand River Scene, 1854 The Met

Hackensack Meadows, Jasper Francis Cropsey, 1890, watercolor, gouache, and graphite on off-white wove paper

Jasper Francis Cropsey Hackensack Meadows, 1890 The Met

Warm sunlight bathes a scene with a herd of five golden tan, ivory, or chocolate-brown cows lying or standing on a low hill near four people on foot and on horseback in this horizontal landscape painting.

Aelbert Cuyp Landscape with Herdsmen, mid 1650s National Gallery of Art

The image shows four adults and one child seated on the ground within an oval frame. The child is on the far left, lying down with a bow and arrow.

George Catlin The Sioux Chief with Several Indians, 1861/1869 National Gallery of Art

The image shows three individuals against a natural background. On the left, a man is seated on the ground, his body wrapped in a beige cloth. He has long, dark hair and a solemn expression, holding a long pipe.

George Catlin Old Menomonie Chief with Two Young Beaux, 1861/1869 National Gallery of Art

The image shows a group of Native American men gathered closely together in a dance formation. They are positioned facing slightly towards the right, with their full bodies visible.

George Catlin Bear Dance - K'nisteneux, 1861 National Gallery of Art

This painting depicts a large bull standing in a grassy plain. The bull is seen from the side, facing the right. Its head is a rich brown color, while its body and legs are swirled with patches of white and brown.

H. Call Prize Bull, 1876 National Gallery of Art

Winter landscape painting with rocky stream lined by orange leafed trees.

John Henry Twachtman Icebound, c. 1889 Art Institute of Chicago

A small child stands facing us on a sun-dappled path that runs up the center of a garden dominated by towering yellow and burnt-orange sunflowers in this loosely painted, vertical scene.

Claude Monet The Artist's Garden at Vétheuil, 1881 National Gallery of Art

A baby nestles in a mass of frilly white fabric atop a colorful patchwork, perhaps a pile of quilts, against a sage and spring-green background in this square painting.

Gustav Klimt Baby (Cradle), 1917/1918 National Gallery of Art

High Point: Shandaken Mountains, Asher Brown Durand, 1853, oil on canvas

Asher Brown Durand High Point: Shandaken Mountains, 1853 The Met

Vibrantly colored geometric painting of a central white and blue waterfall with birds visible through it. A stylized red jungle cat and black wild boar drink at bottom right.

Franz Marc The Bewitched Mill, 1913 Art Institute of Chicago

Lion on the Watch, Jean-Léon Gérôme, c. 1885, oil on wood panel

Jean-Léon Gérôme Lion on the Watch, c. 1885 Cleveland Museum of Art

Boys in a Dory, Winslow Homer, 1873, watercolor washes and gouache over graphite underdrawing on medium rough textured white wove paper

Winslow Homer Boys in a Dory, 1873 The Met

Gray Weather, Grande Jatte, Georges Seurat, ca. 1886–88, oil on canvas

Georges Seurat Gray Weather, Grande Jatte, ca. 1886–88 The Met

Sunset, John Singer Sargent, 1905–6, watercolor, gouache, and graphite on white wove paper

John Singer Sargent Sunset, 1905–6 The Met

Clouds, Thomas Cole, ca. 1838, oil on paper laid down on canvas

Thomas Cole Clouds, ca. 1838 The Met

Moonrise at Sunset, Dwight William Tryon, 1890, oil on wood

Dwight William Tryon Moonrise at Sunset, 1890 The Met

A Foggy Sky, John Frederick Kensett, 1872, oil on canvas

John Frederick Kensett A Foggy Sky, 1872 The Met

Rinaldo and the Magus of Ascalon, Giovanni Battista Tiepolo, c. 1742–45, oil on canvas

Giovanni Battista Tiepolo Rinaldo and the Magus of Ascalon, c. 1742–45 Art Institute of Chicago

Mäda Primavesi (1903–2000), Gustav Klimt, 1912–13, oil on canvas

Gustav Klimt Mäda Primavesi (1903–2000), 1912–13 The Met

From low on a hillside, we look up at a light-skinned woman and boy standing in tall grass against a sunny blue sky in this vertical painting.

Claude Monet Woman with a Parasol - Madame Monet and Her Son, 1875 National Gallery of Art

Sunset at Sea, John Singer Sargent, 1905–6 (?) or 1905–?6, watercolor and gouache on white wove paper

John Singer Sargent Sunset at Sea, 1905–6 (?) or 1905–?6 The Met

Butter-yellow clouds and water, a periwinkle-blue sky, and pale plum-purple buildings blend in hazy, indistinct bands across this horizontal landscape painting.

Joseph Mallord William Turner Approach to Venice, 1844 National Gallery of Art

From high up, we look down and out at a river with seven ferries and barges, the waterway lined with buildings on the bank to our right, in this loosely painted, horizontal landscape.

Camille Pissarro The Louvre, Afternoon, Rainy Weather, 1900 National Gallery of Art

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Living Room 126 shared
Guest Room 85 shared
Bedroom 83 shared
Kids' Room 77 shared

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