Hello folks! I hope you are having a great day today!

Today I want to finish up my Top Ten lists of basic land art by turning my eyes to Forests. Now we have around 150 unique pieces of art for each basic land type. You can check out Scryfall.com for more info on them, as Gatherer is missing any promo card, so art from promos is, sadly, lacking. It's doubly sad because in two cases, my favorite art of that type can't even be found on Gatherer.

Let's turn to Forests. Now, before we get to the Forests, I want to remind you that I am not an artist (or a critic), and this list's existence is not meant to assume that, somehow, it's objective. This is art. By definition, these views are my own. Therefore, the reasons why certain art appears below is also my own. It's basically just my favorite land art and the reasons why. I do own a copy of almost every promo basic land, and most of the foil-ized lands, and run them in my signature deck, Abe's Decks of Happiness and Joy.

Now, I generally find that unlike the other basic lands, Forests art tends to be stronger and prettier overall. Often, my favorite basic land of a given set is a Forest. However, while they are very strong and pretty, they often lack anything else, much like Plains, which tend toward having little in the art of interest beyond a pretty picture.

Here's a great example. Zoltan Boros and Gabor Szikszai have created a beautiful Forest from Shards of Alara. It's compellingly gorgeous! And I appreciate that there is a nice set of trees in the foreground on the left to set the stage! But other than that? There's nothing else here to sink my teeth into - no path, no buildings, no creatures, no weather, nothing to hold my interest beyond the prettiness of the art and scene. Don't get me wrong, that's a strong and valuable part of this piece. It's one of my favorite pieces of land from its set. It would easily make one of my Next Ten or something, but I'm looking for more context with the art that connects with me.

Take Eytan Zana's Avacyn Restored Forest here as a great counter example. It's pretty too! But the drinking ungulate in the background gives the piece context. How big is the tree? What's happening here? Zana's work gives me things to focus on and a pretty scene as well, so I personally enjoy it more.

As opposed to that scene without the animal drinking. To my mind, the first piece is stronger than the latter.

Again, I am no artist or critic. And I have no intention to offend. I am just telling you why the pieces I have chosen below are, in fact, the pieces that I have chosen below.

Honorable Mention #1 - Odyssey Plains by Jerry Tiritilli

Let's begin my list today with a few pretty lands that are very, very pretty! Jerry Tiririlli's Odyssey Forest is striking in how derailed and well done it is. Take the great tree on the left. Look at the detail in this thing. After spending a lot of time and doing a good Tree, Jerry could have just made a decent faded horizon before moving on. But he didn't. That makes this stand out to me. Look at how fleshed out the scenery is everywhere in this piece. There is so much happening here. Thanks Jerry!

Honorable Mention #2 - Ice Age Forest by Pat Morrissey

So pretty! So pretty! So pretty! Love the pink. It's a smart choice that just makes this thing sing. I call it the "Pink Forest." Thanks Pat!

Honorable Mention #3 -Innistrad and Avacyn Restored Forests by Jung Park

Great job Jung Park! Thanks for making it, even in the Honorable Mentions, to four of my five lists. The only one you missed was Mountain, and to be fair, Jung Park has only done a single Mountain. I really enjoy his body of work in MTG, as there isn't a sour note in there. And this duo is another example of just such mastery. His two seasonal takes on the same woodland scene really look nice together, and the colors in both the green and the russet in autumn are strong. When put together? As you can see, it's incredibly well-crafted and toned. Jung Park's work is something you can't quickly put down. Or forget.

Now, I'll let you know right now:

John Avon isn't here. My favorite Avon Forest is his Onslaught one. I consider it somewhere in my 18-20 spot for all of the Forests (around 150). So that's pretty strong!

Avon has hit other of my lists. He hit #7 AND #3 in my Island list. He had an Honorable Mention spot in my Swamp list, and #5 in my Plains and #6 in my Mountains, and until now, he was the only artist to make all four prior lists and in the running for today's. I thought about adding another Honorable Mention Forest for his Onslaught one, but I didn't think that was fair to the other Forests. Thus, Park and Avon tie with a third artist you'll see at #8 for having hit four of my lists.

Let me show you some of the great work Jung Park has put together:

He has done many iconic cards like Chromatic Lantern and Skysovereign, Consul Flagship. My favorite of his is Drowned Catacomb. Jung has a talented eye for setting the scene and added in loads of detail as well. Good job!

10. Portal: Second Age Forests, by Quinton Hoover

Quentin Hoover was one of the iconic artists in the early era of the game, with a number of distinctive pieces, such as Feedback and Regeneration, and Preacher and Grave Robbers. Many powerful cards were handed to Hoover, such as Ball Lightning. He had a strong sense of style.

I consider these Forests to really be a good example of Hoover with his eye. I love the fun treehouses in some of the art, and the fancy swirls in the wood. There is a lot here, and like any Hoover piece, it was gifted with a lot of detail. Unfortunately, Hoover is no longer with us, as he died about 6 years ago. His work will always remain with us though. Do you have a favorite Hoover MTG piece?

Mine is Whispers of the Muse. Not just my favorite Hoover piece, but one of my favorite pieces of all time.

9. Khans and Dragons of Tarkir Forests, by Sam Burley

I really enjoy this duo, particularly the Dragons Forest on the right. Sam does a good job at creating lands that really live where they are set. You saw Sam twice in my Plains Top Ten, and had another appearance in my Top Ten Swamps, so this is the fourth appearance in my lists. Good job Sam!

8. Champions of Kamigawa Forest by Rob Alexander

The biggest question I had with this spot was which of his Forests do I like better? I enjoy both this one and the one with the Orochi eggs. I really don't have a favorite and I can't choose. So, I put them both here. The one of the left is the classic art, with the beautiful setting and the little small Kamigawa style structure to the right of the tree. It's a fun piece, and the water is incredibly strong and well detailed. The Orochi egg Forest is also very well done, with the eggs as the focal point of my eyes. The ground looks great, and I love the split trunk tree off to the side as well. I enjoy them both!

Alexander tied John Avon and Jung Park for hitting four of my lists as well! He hit #5 and #4 in my Island list, #7 in my Plains list, and #4 for my Mountains. Good job Rob!

7. Alpha Forest, Christopher Rush

Take a look back at my full lists. You'll see artwork hitting up through new pieces for sets up through 2018. Up until Forests, you really haven't seen too many early lands charting though, outside of one each from Ice Age, Mirage, and Urza's Saga. A lot of Magic art grew up. Take Mark Poole, as a good example.

He went from:

This, to

This. That's a big improvement in style over 20+ years. Compare my first column published in 2002 to one today and see the difference in writing style. Compare a card designed by Mark Rosewater for Tempest for one today. You get the idea. But the Rush hit the ground running. His art was strong early. The Forest above was not only my favorite from the first set but remains a winner to this day. It stands out. The details in the flowers and the petals show that he gave it his all. No one knew how big MTG was going to be, and Rush certainly wouldn't have known that this Forest and the others for the first set would still have been talked about decades later. It didn't matter to him! Look at the detail, the work, and the artistry. Thanks Christopher Rush! Welcome to a deserved spot in the Top Ten!

6. Fate Reforged Forest, by Adam Paquette

This Forest hits all of my happy places at once. Pretty? Somber and reflective? Powerful? Strongly detailed? Well-designed scene? This is Emerald Enchantment at its best. Adam has created a powerful scene here, and it's hard not to be touched by it. The smoking braziers are, for me, the part that puts the entire thing to my top 5 of all time. That's a cool and well-done touch! Thanks Adam!

By the way, Adam joins only a small number of artists to hit a list twice. You will see him again in this list.....

Right now...

5. Core Set 2019 Forest, by Adam Paquette

I really dig this art! I think the perspective is really great. I think the lights emitting from the pine-cone-esque Magic-y things are really cool. I also love how you can see more and more of them breaking in the background and emitting that eerie ichor-colored light. This is a unique and fun scene. How can you not like it? I have no idea! This is Paquette's gift, to my mind. He is a very talented Maker-of-Scenes.

Want another Paquette scene? How about his Battle for Zendikar work?

Oh, and by the by, I once named Paquette my 10th favorite artist in MTG.

4. Hour of Devastation Forest, by Mark Poole

Mark Poole continues to bring it. Not only was he one of the first artists out there, but this spot here at #4 on my countdown for my favorite Forests isn't his first appearance on this list. I gave him the #8 spot on my Plains list and the #6 spot on my Island one. Well welcome to #4 today! You have cracked my top five and risen by two on each list you charted! This gives Mark a strong showing, and it's all from his recent work in the last couple of years. His pieces are rich. Look at this amazing Hour of Devastation Forest as a good example. The scenery is gorgeous and fleshed out. The setting? The ruins? The destruction of the central city? Poole's world-telling really feels complete, and he has really elevated his game. Great job! Let's keep giving him more and more work! He has earned it.

3. Kaladesh Forest by Christine Choi

What I enjoy about this piece is the striking beauty, the arches, and the feel of beautiful nature. Kaladesh is a plane where the non-Green artificers and such as still inspired by nature and natural objects. That creates an interesting take on the making of artifacts that distinguishes it from other places and plays into an appreciation of nature. And that appreciation is on display here in Christine's land. Look at the path. That's a great example of detailed work that helps to flesh out the scene that she has created. See how delightful? The style of work really looks nice in foil too. Thanks Christine!!

Shout out to Mark Poole's Forest from Commander 2017. It also is inside of a circular branch, and has the shooting star in the distance to pull you in. It's great too! I prefer Christine's but Mark's would easily be in my Next Ten Forests hitting between 20 and 10.

2.Shadowmoor Forest, by Chippy

I appreciate just how strong this piece is. It's a darker Forest that you'd expect to find on Shadowmoor-like plane, so it's moody and dark. Yet, you can still make things out. There is a good use of light and colors and saturation. If you have a copy of this card, go check it out and bring it close to your eyes. Notice something? The eyes perhaps? Chippy's full vision of this piece reveals itself slowly, but majestically. There is both a beauty to this dark scene, and strong unsettling view once you get past the strong palette. Great job Chippy!

1. EURO Forest, by Kev Walker

Last week, I pointed out that Kev Walker had created fewer than 10 basics, and he hit #2 on my top Mountain list. I also promised you that he would make this week's list, and I ain't a liar. This is the most realistic land I have ever seen. Probably because it represents an actual place, but still. It's so effective. I am mesmerized as my eyes walking the path along the middle of the Forest.

I have discussed how I see my heritage growing up in Central Appalachia in West Virginia in the art of my life. This land has always reminded me of the tree tunnels you drive through up the mountain road to get to the top of Spruce Knob, the highest mountain in WV. The incredible emerald canopies of tree and leaf that stretch across the road are rich in color and inviting on a warm Summer's day. That's Kev Walker's piece to a tee. Emerald. Tree Tunnel. Foliage and branch everywhere. An inviting lush path to follow. It's perfect. Thanks Kev! Seriously, Wizards? You need to toss more basic land art this guy's way!

Now, as promised, here is my list of my favorite Basic lands of All Time as well!

10. Shards of Alara Island by Chippy

9. Magic 2012 Swamp, by Jung Park

8. Urza's Saga Island, by Donato Giancola -

7. Odyssey Plains, by Eric Peterson

6. Commander 2017 Mountain by Kev Walker

5. The Mirage Plains Cycle, by Tom Wänerstrand

4. Zendikar Mountain by Vincent Proce

3. EURO Forest, by Kev Walker

2. Lorwyn Swamp by Ron Spears

1. APAC Swamp by Ron Spears

And there we are! Thanks for reading my list!

So what did you think of it? Anything I miss? What are your favorite Forests? Let me know in the comments below!

Abe's Favorite Basic Land Art

Did you enjoy this list? Want to check out the others?

1. Top Swamps
2. Top Plains
3. Top Islands
4. Top Mountains

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