Machu Picchu Watercolor Paintings & Art Prints | Ryan Fox
Machu Picchu remains one of the most extraordinary places I have photographed—and painted. I visited the famous Inca ruins in Peru on two separate photography trips, spending five days exploring Machu Picchu during my first visit and another three days there on my second. Those trips provided hundreds of reference photographs that eventually became a series of original Machu Picchu watercolor paintings and fine art prints.
Every Machu Picchu painting on this page was inspired by my own photographs of the ancient Inca citadel, surrounding Andes Mountains, stone architecture, terraces, and the unmistakable peak of Huayna Picchu.
Machu Picchu Watercolor Paintings Inspired by My Travels
One of my favorite compositions looks through an ancient Inca stone doorway toward the ruins of Machu Picchu and Huayna Picchu beyond. The incredible stonework, changing mountain light, mist, and enormous scale of the Sacred Valley make Machu Picchu almost ridiculously photogenic.
Another painting focuses more closely on the dramatic relationship between the ruins and surrounding mountains.
The painting above was created entirely with a mouth atomizer—a low-tech, old-school airbrush—using stencils and masking techniques instead of traditional brushwork. It’s one of the unconventional watercolor techniques I teach in my workshops. Learn more about my WATERCOLOR WORKSHOPS & CLASSES
I originally photographed these scenes while working as a professional travel photographer. Having several days at Machu Picchu on each trip was invaluable because the weather and light constantly changed. Clouds could completely obscure the mountains and then disappear minutes later, revealing a dramatically different landscape.
And yes, I climbed Huayna Picchu twice.
For anyone unfamiliar with it, Huayna Picchu is the enormous mountain rising directly behind Machu Picchu in the classic photographs of the ruins. The trail includes steep stone staircases, narrow passages and, at least when I visited, some sections with surprisingly little separating you from an impressive amount of empty space.
One poorly placed step and you’d be monkey food several thousand feet below.
Apparently I considered doing this once insufficient.
Painting Machu Picchu in Watercolor
Machu Picchu is a perfect subject for the experimental watercolor techniques I’ve developed throughout my career. Rather than reproducing my photographs literally, I use them as starting points for interpreting the atmosphere, architecture, light and color of the landscape.
Across this series I’ve used watercolor pouring, mouth atomizing, charging, glazing, granulation and traditional brushwork. Pouring and charging allow pigments to mix directly on the paper, creating unpredictable transitions particularly suited to the mountains, ancient stonework and atmospheric skies of the Sacred Valley.
That’s one reason I continue returning to these photographs years later. The location hasn’t changed, but the way I want to paint it has. I can start with the same subject and create an entirely different watercolor.
Visiting Machu Picchu Without Hiking the Inca Trail
The good news for those of us whose mountain-goat skills are questionable is that you don’t have to hike the Inca Trail to visit Machu Picchu.
I’m sure there is nothing better than slugging your way up and down mountains for several days before finally reaching the Sun Gate and seeing Machu Picchu spread across the valley below. You’ve earned that view.
I, however, am clumsy and would probably die.
So I took the bus from Aguas Calientes to Machu Picchu.
I didn’t get the heroic arrival after days of trekking through the Andes, but I did get to spend considerably more time photographing the ruins.
And I survived.
I’d call that a successful compromise.
Exploring Peru’s Sacred Valley
Machu Picchu was only part of what made Peru memorable. The surrounding Sacred Valley of the Incas is filled with spectacular mountain scenery, archaeological sites, traditional communities and centuries of Inca history.
The people were wonderful, the landscape was extraordinary, and the food was considerably more adventurous than my normal diet. Guinea pig wasn’t too bad, and alpaca was surprisingly tasty.
Most importantly for an artist carrying a camera everywhere, there seemed to be another potential painting around every corner.
Shop Original Machu Picchu Paintings & Fine Art Prints
My Machu Picchu watercolor collection includes original paintings and museum-quality fine art prints in multiple sizes, created from photographs I made while traveling through Peru. Each painting originates from my own travel photography rather than stock photographs or AI-generated imagery.
I personally sign my original paintings and fine art prints before shipping. Artwork is carefully packaged, with tracking and insurance when applicable.
[Shop Original Peru Watercolor Paintings & Fine Art Prints]
(Machu Picchu poured watercolor painting)
My Machu Picchu paintings are part of a much larger collection inspired by more than two decades of travel photography around the world. Photography gives me the reference material, but watercolor lets me reinterpret the places I’ve visited through color, atmosphere and experimentation. Explore more of my travel-inspired watercolor paintings and photography from destinations around the world.
Planning a Trip to Machu Picchu
If seeing Machu Picchu in person is on your bucket list, most international travelers first arrive in Lima and then fly to Cusco, the primary gateway to the Sacred Valley and Machu Picchu.
Flights to Cusco and Peru
Cusco is the usual starting point for travelers continuing into the Sacred Valley and toward Machu Picchu.
Expedia Flight Search
Where to Stay Near Machu Picchu
Many visitors stay in Aguas Calientes, also known as Machu Picchu Pueblo, at the base of the mountain. It’s convenient rather than glamorous, with plenty of hotels, restaurants and easy access to the buses traveling to the archaeological site.
If I HAD the money, however, there’s another option.
The Sanctuary Lodge sits immediately outside the entrance to Machu Picchu. You really can’t get much closer without pitching a tent among the llamas.
Machu Picchu & Peru Travel Guides
I still buy at least one physical travel guide before most international trips. Phones die, internet connections disappear, and apparently I’m old-fashioned enough to appreciate having something made out of paper in my backpack.
I frequently use Lonely Planet guides for trip planning, and there are also dedicated Machu Picchu books for travelers interested in the history and archaeology of the Inca Empire.
Lonely Planet Peru Travel Guide
Machu Picchu Travel Guides:
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Ryan Fox AWS, NWS, TWSA
Ryan Fox Painting
(919) 645-8345
Keep on working, great job!