Wallpapers For July: Finding Creative Energy In The Everyday

For more than nine years, our monthly wallpaper series has paired community artwork with practical calendar downloads. This July, the collection takes its cue from quiet moments: the scent of rain, a summer swim, or moonlight on a clear evening. These designs were contributed by artists and designers from around the world, each working without a prescribed theme to keep every image an authentic reflection of its creator.

Every wallpaper below is available for free in two versions — with and without a calendar — and can be downloaded at common resolutions. Click any preview to open the full-size image. Artists were given full creative freedom, and this month’s results range from playful to thought-provoking.

If you're interested in seeing your own work in a future edition, submissions for August are open. Details on how to participate are available here.

A Nod To Small Joys

Designed by Lívi Lénárt of Hungary, Birdie July captures the cheerful spirit of the season with a colorful illustration.

Birdie July

Download options:

  • Preview
  • With calendar: 800x600, 1024x1024, 1152x864, 1280x960, 1280x1024, 1600x1200, 1920x1080, 2560x1440
  • Without calendar: 800x600, 1024x1024, 1152x864, 1280x960, 1280x1024, 1600x1200, 1920x1080, 2560x1440

A Push Toward Progress

Andrew, a designer from the United States, shares Strive For Progress, Not Perfection, a motivational piece rooted in personal practice. “I created this wallpaper as a daily reminder that it's better to take one small step towards my goal every day than to do nothing at all out of fear that it won't be perfect,” he explains. “I hope you enjoy it and it helps you keep motivated every day!”

Strive For Progress, Not Perfection

Available resolutions:

  • Preview
  • With calendar: 320x480, 1024x1024, 1280x720, 1680x1200, 1920x1080, 2560x1440
  • Without calendar: 320x480, 1024x1024, 1280x720, 1680x1200, 1920x1080, 2560x1440

A Warning From The Deep

Vancouver-based artist Aysha Samrin turns her attention to environmental concerns in Plastic Whale. The image was inspired by illustrator Kerby Rosanes' "geometric beasts" series and reflects the long life of plastic waste in the ocean. "Plastic bags are known to stay in the oceans for about 450 years before beginning to degrade," she notes, emphasizing the impact on marine wildlife both large and small.

Plastic Whale

Download the wallpaper in these sizes:

  • Preview
  • With calendar: 1440x900, 1920x1080, 1920x1200, 1920x1440, 2560x1440
  • Without calendar: 1440x900, 1920x1080, 1920x1200, 1920x1440, 2560x1440

Designing for the Heat of Summer

As temperatures climb, Ricardo Gimenes from Sweden channels that feeling into a wallpaper that leans into the season’s warmth. The design uses bold, saturated color to capture the intensity of a hot July day.

It’s Getting Hot

The artwork is available in a wide range of resolutions, from small phone screens up to large desktop displays. Each version comes in two flavors: one with a calendar for the month and one without. Links to every size in both formats are listed below, making it easy to grab the right fit for your device.

Downloads With Calendar

Downloads Without Calendar

For those who want just the artwork without the date grid, the no-calendar set gives you the full, unobstructed composition. Pick the resolution that matches your screen and save it directly from the link.

A Tribute to Han Solo, Five Decades On

Harrison Ford celebrates his 78th birthday on July 13th. Long before he became one of Hollywood’s most prolific and versatile leading men, Ford was a working carpenter and aspiring actor. During the 1970s, his carpentry work took him into the homes of prominent film directors and producers, which ultimately led to a pivotal meeting with George Lucas. That encounter would not only transform Ford's career but also reshape the cinematic landscape.

Ford's portrayal of Han Solo in the Star Wars franchise cemented his legacy, remembered for his bond with Chewbacca and his romance with Princess Leia. Beyond his five-decade career full of award-winning performances, Ford remains a private individual who finds balance in his two passions: flying and woodworking. This commemorative artwork from PopArt Studio in Serbia captures the actor's journey from his early days as a craftsman to his enduring status as a screen icon.

Happy Birthday, Harrison Ford!

Moonlit Sights and Safe Celebrations

One of this month’s wallpapers was born from a simple late-night drive. Kai Böker was out on the road when they noticed the moon sitting unusually large and low on the horizon, a moment striking enough to become a piece of design. The finished work reminds us to keep our eyes open for those small, beautiful moments in everyday life and to take in nature whenever we get the chance.

Majestic Moon

The design is available in a wide range of resolutions from 800x480 to 2560x1440, both with and without a calendar overlay. You can view a preview or grab the version that fits your screen.

Kissing Day, With Distance

International Kissing Day is normally a lighthearted excuse for public displays of affection, but in the middle of a pandemic it presents a different kind of design challenge. Nathalie Lansbergen, who is based in the Netherlands, took that on with a playful nod to the situation: “Celebrating kissing day in a Corona period requires attention. #staysafe.”

Happy International Kissing Day

The wallpaper keeps the technical options consistent with the others in the July roundup. Choose between calendar and no-calendar layouts in nearly every popular desktop and laptop resolution.

Both wallpapers, like the rest of the collection, come as free PNG files. Start from the preview image to see which mood fits your desktop, then download the exact resolution and layout you prefer.

Summer Scenes and a Moment of Gratitude

This month's collection captures two very different moods: the quiet satisfaction of a garden in full bloom, and a global moment of appreciation for the people who raised us.

New Jersey-based designer Monica Barron contributes a bright, optimistic wallpaper titled Bloom Where You Are Planted. The image freezes a sunflower at the exact instant it opens, a reminder that good things often arrive when you least expect them.

Bloom Where You Are Planted

Barron's wallpaper is available in nine resolutions, with and without a calendar overlay. The standard set runs from 1080x1920 for mobile screens up to 2560x1440 for high-resolution desktop displays.

The second entry takes a more sentimental turn. For Global Day of Parents, the UK-based agency Ever Increasing Circles offers a design that acknowledges the often-unseen work of parents and parental figures. As the team puts it, the day is a chance to say "Thank you, I know I put you through a lot but I do appreciate it!"

Global Day Of Parents

The parent-themed wallpaper is the more versatile of the two in terms of formats. It is downloadable in both calendar and no-calendar versions across a wide range of aspect ratios, with options spanning small phone screens (320x480) up to widescreen monitors (2560x1440).

Both designers provided a preview image alongside the full-resolution files, so you can check the fit before committing to a download. Whether your July leans toward a spot of horticultural optimism or a moment of family gratitude, there is a wallpaper here to match.

A Roundup of Past July Favorites

The Smashing Magazine wallpaper archives hold many timeless designs worth revisiting. Here is a small selection of favorites from previous July editions, all available without a calendar.

Fruity and Floral Designs

Hello, Strawberry Sundae!
PopArt Studio from Serbia celebrates the upcoming National Strawberry Sundae Day on July 7th with this sweet and refreshing design.

Hello, Strawberry Sundae!

Floral Thing
Beata Kurek from Poland combines her personal sketches of Polish herbs and flowers into a light and simple design with a hint of romantic feeling.

Smashing Desktop Wallpapers - July 2012

Heated Mountains
Marijana Pivac from Croatia notes that warm summer weather inspired the color palette for this piece.

Heated Mountains

Landscapes and Places

Alentejo Plain
José Guerra from Portugal depicts the large wheat-growing plains of the Alentejo region, with scattered trees and the storks that dominate the landscape at this time of year.

Alentejo Plain

Summermoon
A design from Erik Neumann in Germany.

Summermoon

Creatures Big and Small

Keep Moving Forward
Glynnis Owen from Australia finds inspiration in snails: keep heading toward your goal in tiny steps, enjoy the journey, and hopefully the effort will be worth it.

Keep Moving Forward

Save The Tigers
Athulya from Calicut highlights Global Tiger Day on July 29. Established at the 2010 Saint Petersburg Tiger Summit, the day promotes a global system for protecting tiger habitats and raising conservation awareness.

Save The Tigers

Cactus Hug
A design by Ilaria Bagnasco from Italy.

Cactus Hug

A Flamboyance Of Flamingos
Wonderland Collective from South Africa brings color to dreary winter days in the southern hemisphere and a pop of vibrancy to northern summer.

A Flamboyance Of Flamingos

Whimsical Summer Scenes

Riding In The Drizzle
DMS Software from India describes rain as showering new seeds of life, awakening blooming life with the music of raindrops.

Riding In The Drizzle