20 life-changing locations that inspired movies, books, and art

Hulton Archive // Getty Images The right combination of place, time, and frame of mind can inspire works of creativity that live on throughout history. Could Thoreau have thought up the words “a man is rich in proportion to the number of things which he can afford to let alone” were he anywhere but by Walden Pond? Would The Beatles’ “White Album” have been as transcendent if it were not fueled by the endless nights of conversation, music playing, vegetarian meals, and meditation at Chaurasi Kutia? Stacker researched 20 locations that spurred significant changes in the lives of influential creators, telling the larger stories of artists’ humble beginnings and rebirths prompted by the places they visited or resided. Many artists, awestruck by landscape and nature, experienced life-altering changes reverberating in their work. Some honored the flow of their creative geniuses when they encountered terrain that challenged them emotionally or physically. And others fell into places that taught them to understand different cultures and came away all the better for it. Continue reading to learn about the history and influences of these places–and the impact these artists had on them in return. Hammamet, Tunisia: Paul Klee mehdi33300 // Shutterstock “Colour and I are one. I am a painter,” Swiss-born German painter Paul Klee wrote in his diary during a two-week study tour through Tunisia in 1914. By then, he had already spent three years studying drawing and painting in Munich, associating with Expressionists, and visiting a fellow artist experimenting with Cubism in Paris. On his first trip outside of Europe, he found inspiration in Tunisia, North Africa. In the coastal town of Hammamet, the bright colors, vibrant scenes, and the heat and light of North Africa dazzled Klee. It inspired him to experiment with removing representational references from his paintings of landscapes and architecture. Instead, he translated them into abstract shapes and blocks of color, which would become his distinctive style. “Hammamet with Its Mosque,” is one of his best-known avant-garde paintings from the time. In the years following, Klee would use the new visual language he created in Tunisia to shape his depictions of landscapes in Central Europe. London: Jimi Hendrix Claudio Divizia // Shutterstock From his first night in London, Seattle-born guitarist Jimi Hendrix knew his tenure there would be life-altering. That night, Hendrix wrote: “I’m in England, Dad…I met some people, and they’re going to make me a big star.” Few knew of him in the U.S., and it was in London where he found his sound and style. Hendrix initially faced issues at a London airport for not having a work permit, but soon after, famed guitarist Eric Clapton invited him to play with Cream at the Regent Street Polytechnic. Hendrix left other “guitar players weeping,” according to singer Terry Reid. In London, Hendrix met Roger Mayer, a sonic wave engineer for the Ministry of Defense. An inventor of musical devices, Mayer worked on the Octavia guitar effect that produced a “doubling” echo–sounds that were too “far out” for other musicians, but perfectly palatable to Hendrix, who would listen to Mozart and Handel, play jazz like Coltrane could, and read sci-fi. Together with these sonic experiments, Hendrix’s prowess produced a kaleidoscopic sound that sent shockwaves through the rock scene. Following his premature death, Hendrix’s legacy still leaves a mark in London with the Handel Hendrix House (pictured), a museum that recreates Hendrix’s flat and that of his “neighbor,” classical musician George Frideric Handel, who lived next to the flat some 200 years prior. Lake Geneva, Switzerland: Mary Shelley Harold Cunningham // Getty Images In May 1816, 18-year-old Mary Godwin (soon-to-be Mary Shelley) only sought a vacation, and did not set out to conjure a story like “Frankenstein.” But during “the year without a summer” in 1816, frequent rainstorms and constant low temperatures from a catastrophic volcano eruption at Mount Tambora in Indonesia disrupted weather patterns across the globe and kept Shelley indoors. To pass the time, Shelley, her future husband Percy Shelley, her stepsister Claire Clairmont, Lord Byron, and a few others spent days discussing various topics, including philosophical doctrines and principles of animation. Fueled by these discussions, Byron encouraged his companions to try writing horror stories. Shelley would use the dreary weather to reflect the environment surrounding Dr. Frankenstein, who created the famous monster that still haunts popular culture today. Bruges, Belgium: Martin McDonagh Kotomiti Okuma // Shutterstock While visiting Bruges in 2006, the British Irish playwright and director Martin McDonagh was inspired to write the screenplay for his first full-length picture, 2008’s genre-defying film and cult classic, “In Bruges.” Bruges’s picturesque, medieval architecture and canals became a character in itself, serving as the backdrop for McDonagh to write “two different characters who might respond to Bruges in distinct ways,” he wrote in production notes for the film. His early vision became a dark comedy centering around Irish hitmen stranded in Bruges after an unsuccessful assignment. The city, known as the “Venice of the North,” was already beloved by tourists, but after the movie, it began offering tours geared toward fans. The city has had to implement measures to avoid overtourism and “Disneyfication.” Rishikesh, India: The Beatles Bettmann // Getty Images Chaurasi Kutia, an ashram at the foothills of the Himalayas, near Rishikesh in the northern state of Uttarakhand in India, was the birthplace of more than 45 Beatles songs, most of which ended up on “The White Album.” The legendary band’s pivotal experience began in 1966 when the musical group stopped by Delhi on the way home to London after a tour in Japan and the Philippines. At the time, guitarist George Harrison was drawn to Indian music, having heard the sitar in the music his mother played and using its distinct sound in the song “Norwegian Wood.” The brief stopover soon blossomed into a return trip to India in 1968 to stay at the ashram and learn transcendental meditation. In Bob Spitz’s book “The Beatles,” Cynthia Lennon notes, “John and George were [finally] in their element [at the ashram]. They threw themselves totally into the Maharishi’s teachings, were happy, relaxed and above all found a piece of mind that had been denied them for so long.” McCartney was never without his guitar at the ashram, and listeners can hear the results in the “White Album.” The trip would also inspire Harrison to convert to Hinduism, becoming one of the most well-known advocates for Indian classical music. The 18-acre ashram fell into disrepair for decades starting in the 1970s until it was restored and opened to the public as the “Beatles Ashram” in 2018, around the 50th anniversary of The Beatles’ stay. Chicago: The Hairy Who Robert Knopes/Education Images/Universal Images Group via Getty Images The renowned Art Institute of Chicago was a breeding ground for members of the Hairy Who, six artists inspired by the Windy City. The group, all new grads of the institute, created and exhibited distinct artworks between 1966 and 1969, using vivid colors, comic book aesthetics juxtaposed with sinister images, and a good dose of satire. The work turned Chicago into an overlooked stop between New York and the West Coast into a quirky art destination. The works of the members, including Art Green, Gladys Nilsson, Jim Nutt, Jim Falconer, Suellen Rocca and Karl Wirsum, drew from pop art, but lacked the cool, aloof approach of Andy Warhol or Roy Lichtenstein. Instead, Hyperallergic writer Robert Archambeau notes, “the Chicago version of Pop isn’t cool at all: it’s sweaty, nervous, sometimes giggly or goofy.” The group’s unbridled experimentation turned into three informal Chicago exhibitions alongside appearances in San Francisco, New York, and Washington. While the Hairy Who had a short tenure, their broader movement of Chicago Imagists ‌is apparent in the works of Jeff Koons and Chris Ware. Mexico City: Frida Kahlo Andrew Hasson // Getty Images Frida Kahlo was born in Mexico City in 1907, and her life was never easy. At 6, she contracted polio, which caused major injury to her right leg and meant a lengthy time in recovery. At 18, she was in a bus accident that killed several passengers. The accident left her with a fractured pelvic bone, punctured abdomen and uterus, and a spine broken in three places, among other injuries. Kahlo stayed at the hospital for a month and would need a lifetime of surgeries. She had hoped to work in the medical field, but unable to walk, she used a mirror and modified easel to paint self-portraits from bed, depicting her pain. Still, this time was transformational for her. She would later say, “Everything can have beauty, even the worst horror,” which is reflected in her surrealist paintings that capture the female form and experience, including miscarriage. Kahlo lived with her husband, painter Diego Rivera, in the famous La Casa Azul, the same home where she was born and raised. The home–and its contents, complete with Aztec and Toltec artifacts–is now a museum. Pacific Crest Trail: Cheryl Strayed Mike Peters // Shutterstock At 26, Cheryl Strayed took on an ambitious challenge to trek 1,100 miles alone on the Pacific Crest Trail to work through her myriad tragedies, including losing her mother to cancer, heroin use, and divorce. Strayed, now a bestselling author, experienced the emotional and physical catharsis she sought in the arduous hike from Mexico to Canada through the West Coast states of Washington, Oregon, and California. In her memoir, “Wild: From Lost to Found on the Pacific Crest Trail,” she wrote, “I was amazed that what I needed to survive could be carried on my back. And, most surprising of all, that I could carry it.” The book later became a movie starring Reese Witherspoon, tripling the number of long-distance hikers traveling the PCT and prompting the trail’s association to launch a #responsiblywild campaign to preserve the quality of the trail and promote more conscientious hiking. Hydra, Greece: Leonard Cohen La_Mar // Shutterstock Before Leonard Cohen traveled to the Greek island of Hydra in 1960, it had already been a popular spot for artists seeking seclusion, but it had eluded tourists. At 25 years old, Cohen arrived as an unknown writer, using a $2,000 grant from the Canadian Arts Council and a bequest from his grandmother to write a novel and buy a house. The home Cohen bought had no electricity or running water, but still, it was a private place where he could work. He would later describe it to his mother: “All through the day you hear the calls of the street vendors and they are really rather musical … I get up around 7 generally and work till about noon. Early morning is coolest and therefore best, but I love the heat anyhow, especially when the Aegean Sea is 10 minutes from my door.” While there, the coupled writers Charmian Clift and George Johnston would inspire Cohen with their lifestyle. Cohen would go on to write one of his signature songs, “Bird on a Wire,” inspired by the transformation of rustic life in Hydra in the face of technology. In his six years there, Cohen also met his muse, Marianne Ihlen, who inspired “So Long, Marianne.” Subsequent stays in Hydra helped Cohen produce two novels, “The Favourite Game” and “Beautiful Losers.” The island still inspires visiting artists and is home to an annual exhibition that has shown works by influential artists like Jeff Koons and Kiki Smith. Walden Pond, Massachusetts: Henry David Thoreau