We always try our best to challenge your artistic abilities and produce some interesting, beautiful and creative artwork. And as designers we usually turn to different sources of inspiration. As a matter of fact, we’ve discovered the best one—desktop wallpapers that are a little more distinctive than the usual crowd. This creativity mission has been going on for six years now, and we are very thankful to all designers who have contributed and are still diligently contributing each month.
This post features free desktop wallpapers created by artists across the globe for May 2014. Both versions with a calendar and without a calendar can be downloaded for free. It’s time to freshen up your wallpaper!
Please note that:
- All images can be clicked on and lead to the preview of the wallpaper,
- You can feature your work in our magazine by taking part in our Desktop Wallpaper Calendars series. We are regularly looking for creative designers and artists to be featured on Smashing Magazine. Are you one of them?
Beautiful Things
Designed by Elise Vanoorbeek from Belgium.
- preview
- with calendar: 1280×720, 1280×800, 1280×960, 1280×1024, 1440×1050, 1440×900, 1680×1050, 1680×1200, 1920×1080, 1920×1200, 2560×1440
- without calendar: 1280×720, 1280×800, 1280×960, 1280×1024, 1440×1050, 1440×900, 1680×1050, 1680×1200, 1920×1080, 1920×1200, 2560×1440
Hot Air Balloon Ride
“Spring is the perfect time to take a ride in a hot air balloon.” — Designed by Marina Eyl from Pennsylvania, USA.
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- with calendar: 1024×768, 1280×1024, 1680×1050, 1680×1200, 1920×1080
- without calendar: 1024×768, 1280×1024, 1680×1050, 1680×1200, 1920×1080
Swimming In a Fishbowl, Year After Year
“Here is my cartoonish adaptation of a line from a PinkFloyd balad – an illustration for a month which, where I come from, is considered to be the month of love.” — Designed by Katerina Tuskova from the Czech Republic.
- preview
- with calendar: 1024×768, 1440×900, 1920×1080, 1920×1200, 2560×1440, 640×960, 640×1136, 480×800
- without calendar: 1024×768, 1440×900, 1920×1080, 1920×1200, 2560×1440, 640×960, 640×1136, 480×800
Colorful City
Designed by Laboratorio Creativo from Romania.
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- with calendar: 1280×800, 1440×900, 1680×1050, 1920×1200, 1600×1000, 1024×640, 2560×1600, 2880×1800
- without calendar: 1280×800, 1440×900, 1680×1050, 1920×1200, 1600×1000, 1024×640, 2560×1600, 2880×1800
May Your Dreams Come True
“Enjoy the sunny days of May & may all your dreams come true.” — Designed by WebOlution from Greece.
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- with calendar: 1024×1024, 1280×800, 1280×1024, 1680×1050, 1920×1080, 1920×1200, 2560×1440, 640×960, 1366×768, 2560×1600
- without calendar: 1024×1024, 1280×800, 1280×1024, 1680×1050, 1920×1080, 1920×1200, 2560×1440, 640×960, 1366×768, 2560×1600
MonkGolfier
“It’s our first attempt; we recently changed our workplace and now we’re in a windy place, so we like the idea of flying in the air, somehow.” — Designed by Monk Software from Italy.
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- with calendar: 320×480, 1024×768, 1280×800, 1280×1024, 1920×1080, 2560×1440, 960×640
- without calendar: 320×480, 1024×768, 1280×800, 1280×1024, 1920×1080, 2560×1440, 960×640
Sour Cherry
“May comes with cherries! And, yeah, I was listening to a song called ‘Sour Cherry’. Also, it was a good excuse to improve my drawing abilities with my brand new pen tablet :)” — Designed by Renata Biondi from Italy.
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- with calendar: 320×480, 640×480, 800×480, 1024×1024, 1280×800, 1400×1050, 1440×900, 1680×1050, 1920×1200, 2560×1440
- without calendar: 320×480, 640×480, 800×480, 1024×1024, 1280×800, 1400×1050, 1440×900, 1680×1050, 1920×1200, 2560×1440
Ticklish Tongue
“Don’t let the ants take away your days!” — Designed by Ricardo Gimenes from Brazil.
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- with calendar: 320×480, 1024×768, 1024×1024, 1280×800, 1280×960, 1280×1024, 1400×1050, 1440×900, 1600×1200, 1680×1050, 1680×1200, 1920×1080, 1920×1200, 1920×1440, 2560×1440, 640×960, 1366×768, 1600×1050, 2880×1800
- without calendar: 320×480, 1024×768, 1024×1024, 1280×800, 1280×960, 1280×1024, 1400×1050, 1440×900, 1600×1200, 1680×1050, 1680×1200, 1920×1080, 1920×1200, 1920×1440, 2560×1440, 640×960, 1366×768, 1600×1050, 2880×1800
Alternative Universe
“I was inspired by space, an exposition at the Centre Pompidou and some work on ISO50.” — Designed by Yakim van Zuijlen from the Netherlands.
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- with calendar: 1152×864, 1280×720, 1280×800, 1280×960, 1280×1025, 1400×1050, 1440×900, 1600×1200, 1680×1050, 1680×1200, 1920×1080, 1920×1200, 1920×1440, 2560×1440
- without calendar: 1152×864, 1280×720, 1280×800, 1280×960, 1280×1025, 1400×1050, 1440×900, 1600×1200, 1680×1050, 1680×1200, 1920×1080, 1920×1200, 1920×1440, 2560×1440
A Maternal Soft Drink
“May is the mothers’ month, so I dedicate this calendar to the soft drink’s mother (and of course to my mother) because they always know what we need!” — Designed by Verónica Valenzuela from Spain.
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- with calendar: 800×480, 1024×768, 1152×864, 1280×800, 1280×960, 1440×900, 1680×1200, 1920×1080, 2560×1440
- without calendar: 800×480, 1024×768, 1152×864, 1280×800, 1280×960, 1440×900, 1680×1200, 1920×1080, 2560×1440
Everyday Is Chicken Rice Day
“I’m always craving for a delicious plate of Hainanese chicken rice. So, with the dish on my screen, hopefully it can lessen my craving. :D Enjoy!” — Designed by Lew Su Ann from Brunei.
- preview
- with calendar: 640×480, 800×600, 1024×768, 1152×864, 1280×720, 1280×800, 1280×960, 1400×1050, 1440×900, 1600×1200, 1680×1050, 1920×1080, 1920×1200, 1920×1440, 1366×768
- without calendar: 640×480, 800×600, 1024×768, 1152×864, 1280×720, 1280×800, 1280×960, 1400×1050, 1440×900, 1600×1200, 1680×1050, 1920×1080, 1920×1200, 1920×1440, 1366×768
Sweet Lily Of The Valley
“The ‘lily of the valley’ came earlier this year. In France, we celebrate the month of May with this plant.” — Designed by Philippe Brouard from France.
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- with calendar: 800×480, 1024×768, 1024×1024, 1280×720, 1280×1024, 1440×900, 1920×1080, 1920×1440, 2560×1440
- without calendar: 800×480, 1024×768, 1024×1024, 1280×720, 1280×1024, 1440×900, 1920×1080, 1920×1440, 2560×1440
Birds Of May
“A little known “holiday” on May 4th known as “Bird Day”. It is the first holiday in The United States celebrating birds. Hurray for birds!” — Designed by Clarity Creative Group from Orlando, FL.
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- with calendar: 320×480, 640×480, 640×960, 640×1136, 800×480, 800×600, 1024×768, 1024×1024, 1152×864, 1280×720, 1280×800, 1280×960, 1280×1024, 1400×1050, 1440×900, 1600×1200, 1680×1050, 1680×1200, 1920×1080, 1920×1200, 1920×1440, 2560×1440
- without calendar: 320×480, 640×480, 640×960, 640×1136, 800×480, 800×600, 1024×768, 1024×1024, 1152×864, 1280×720, 1280×800, 1280×960, 1280×1024, 1400×1050, 1440×900, 1600×1200, 1680×1050, 1680×1200, 1920×1080, 1920×1200, 1920×1440, 2560×1440
Spring Street
“My inspiration was that people finally get to go outside and enjoy the good weather.” — Designed by Kaylee Alessie from the Netherlands.
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- with calendar: 640×480, 800×600, 1280×800, 1400×1050, 1440×900, 1600×1200, 1680×1050, 1920×1200, 1920×1440
- without calendar: 640×480, 800×600, 1280×800, 1400×1050, 1440×900, 1600×1200, 1680×1050, 1920×1200, 1920×1440
World’s Labor Day
“May 1st is World’s Labor Day for everyone. Even cows have the right to take a rest!” — Designed by Lina Kahal from Lebanon.
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- with calendar: 320×480, 640×480, 800×480, 800×600, 1024×768, 1024×1024, 1152×864, 1280×720, 1280×800, 1280×960, 1280×1024, 1400×1050, 1440×900, 1600×1200, 1680×1050, 1680×1200, 1920×1080, 1920×1200, 1920×1440, 2560×1440
- without calendar: 320×480, 640×480, 800×480, 800×600, 1024×768, 1024×1024, 1152×864, 1280×720, 1280×800, 1280×960, 1280×1024, 1400×1050, 1440×900, 1600×1200, 1680×1050, 1680×1200, 1920×1080, 1920×1200, 1920×1440, 2560×1440
Hex
“With spring on its way there has been a lot of allergy talk around the office. One of the ways to help allergies brought up by a coworker was eating local honey since it’s made from flowers in the area. Ode de Buzz.” — Designed by Dylan Baumann from the United States.
- preview
- with calendar: 320×480, 640×480, 800×600, 1024×1024, 1280×1024, 1600×1200, 1680×1200, 1920×1080, 1920×1440, 2560×1440
- without calendar: 320×480, 640×480, 800×600, 1024×1024, 1280×1024, 1600×1200, 1680×1200, 1920×1080, 1920×1440, 2560×1440
Design Solves Problems
“The life of a designer is a life of fight. Fight against the ugliness. Just like a doctor fights against disease. For us, the visual disease is what we have around, and what we try to do is cure it somehow with design.” — Designed by Burhanuddin Tezabwala from India.
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- with calendar: 1024×768, 1024×1024, 1152×864, 1280×720, 1280×800, 1280×960, 1280×1024, 1400×1050, 1440×900, 1600×1200, 1680×1050, 1680×1200, 1920×1080, 1920×1200, 1920×1440, 2560×1400, 1366×768
- without calendar: 1024×768, 1024×1024, 1152×864, 1280×720, 1280×800, 1280×960, 1280×1024, 1400×1050, 1440×900, 1600×1200, 1680×1050, 1680×1200, 1920×1080, 1920×1200, 1920×1440, 2560×1400, 1366×768
What’d You Do Ray?
Designed by Matt Noa from the United States.
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- with calendar: 1024×768, 1280×800, 1280×1024, 1440×900, 1920×1080, 1920×1200, 2560×1440, 2880×1800
- without calendar: 1024×768, 1280×800, 1280×1024, 1440×900, 1920×1080, 1920×1200, 2560×1440, 2880×1800
Get Out Of Your House
“We had to make it as an assignment for school.” — Designed by Maartje Voortwist from the Netherlands.
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- with calendar: 320×480, 640×480, 800×480, 800×600, 1024×768, 1024×1024, 1152×864, 1280×720, 1280×800, 1280×960, 1280×1024, 1400×1050, 1440×900, 1600×1200, 1680×1050, 1680×1200, 1920×1080, 1920×1200, 1920×1440, 2560×1440
- without calendar: 320×480, 640×480, 800×480, 800×600, 1024×768, 1024×1024, 1152×864, 1280×720, 1280×800, 1280×960, 1280×1024, 1400×1050, 1440×900, 1600×1200, 1680×1050, 1680×1200, 1920×1080, 1920×1200, 1920×1440, 2560×1440
Ocean of Flowers
Designed by Adrian Limbasan from Romania.
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- with calendar: 1024×768, 1152×864, 1280×720, 1280×800, 1280×960, 1400×1050, 1440×900, 1600×1200, 1680×1050, 1920×1080, 1920×1200, 1920×1440
- without calendar: 1024×768, 1152×864, 1280×720, 1280×800, 1280×960, 1400×1050, 1440×900, 1600×1200, 1680×1050, 1920×1080, 1920×1200, 1920×1440
May Your Month Be Merry
“I wanted to create something that reflected the warm feeling you get in May when it has finally bloomed into Spring.” — Designed by Jamie Gray from Iowa.
- preview
- with calendar: 640×480, 800×480, 800×600, 1024×768, 1024×1024, 1152×864, 1280×720, 1280×800, 1280×960, 1280×1024, 1400×1050, 1440×900, 1600×1200, 1680×1050, 1680×1200, 1920×1080, 1920×1200, 1920×1440, 2560×1440
- without calendar: 640×480, 800×480, 800×600, 1024×768, 1024×1024, 1152×864, 1280×720, 1280×800, 1280×960, 1280×1024, 1400×1050, 1440×900, 1600×1200, 1680×1050, 1680×1200, 1920×1080, 1920×1200, 1920×1440, 2560×1440
Rice Butterflies
“Love is in the air. And so are butterflies.” — Designed by Dejan Cirkvenčič Kralj from Ljubljana, Slovenia.
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- with calendar: 320×480, 640×480, 800×480, 800×600, 1024×768, 1024×1024, 1152×864, 1280×720, 1280×960, 1280×1024, 1400×1050, 1440×900, 1600×1200, 1680×1050, 1920×1080, 1920×1200, 1920×1440, 2560×1440
- without calendar: 320×480, 640×480, 800×480, 800×600, 1024×768, 1024×1024, 1152×864, 1280×720, 1280×960, 1280×1024, 1400×1050, 1440×900, 1680×1050, 1680×1200, 1920×1080, 1920×1200, 1920×1440, 2560×1440
May You Fly Away
“My sister likes air balloons and she kindly asked me if I could make one wallpaper for her! So here it is! I hope you’ll like it and enjoy it! :)” — Designed by Tatiana Anagnostaki from Greece.
- preview
- with calendar: 1024×768, 1280×1024, 1440×900, 1680×1050, 1680×1200, 1920×1440, 2560×1440
- without calendar: 1024×768, 1280×1024, 1440×900, 1680×1050, 1680×1200, 1920×1440, 2560×1440
Sunflower
Designed by Luc Versleijen from the Netherlands.
- preview
- with calendar: 320×480, 640×480, 800×600, 1024×768, 1024×1024, 1152×864, 1280×720, 1280×800, 1280×960, 1280×1024, 1440×900, 1920×1080, 1920×1200, 2560×1440
- without calendar: 320×480, 640×480, 800×600, 1024×768, 1024×1024, 1152×864, 1280×720, 1280×800, 1280×960, 1280×1024, 1440×900, 1920×1080, 1920×1200, 2560×1440
Spring Bird
“Colourful month, colourful bird.” — Designed by Nicky Deenen from the Netherlands.
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- with calendar: 1152×864, 1280×720, 1600×1200, 1920×1080, 1920×1440, 2560×1440
- without calendar: 1152×864, 1280×720, 1600×1200, 1920×1080, 1920×1440, 2560×1440
Meditation Month
“During May, try meditating because meditation can help us embrace our worries, our fears, and our anger, and that is very healing.” — Designed by Marc Daccache from Lebanon.
- preview
- with calendar: 320×480, 640×480, 800×480, 800×600, 1024×768, 1024×1024, 1152×864, 1280×720, 1280×800, 1280×960, 1280×1024, 1400×1050, 1440×900, 1600×1200, 1680×1050, 1680×1200, 1920×1080, 1920×1200, 1920×1440, 2560×1440
- without calendar: 320×480, 640×480, 800×480, 800×600, 1024×768, 1024×1024, 1152×864, 1280×720, 1280×800, 1280×960, 1280×1024, 1400×1050, 1440×900, 1600×1200, 1680×1050, 1680×1200, 1920×1080, 1920×1200, 1920×1440, 2560×1440
Join In Next Month!
Please note that we respect and carefully consider the ideas and motivation behind each and every artist’s work. This is why we give all artists the full freedom to explore their creativity and express emotions and experience throughout their works. This is also why the themes of the wallpapers weren’t anyhow influenced by us, but rather designed from scratch by the artists themselves.
A big thank you to all designers for their participation. Join in next month!
What’s Your Favorite?
What’s your favorite theme or wallpaper for this month? Please let us know in the comment section below.
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Source : smashingmagazine[dot]com
