Even though he outlived many of his artistic peers by several decades, he remained a traditionalist and expressed strong criticism of many of the new trends in the painting of his day.

Kyhn became part of the movement and was able to exhibit his first landscape, Et bornholmsk Strandparti (A View of the Beach on Bornholm), an area he had visited over a period of several years.

In 1845, Kyhn won a prize in the Neuhausen Competition (Neuhausenske Konkurs) for Landskab, hvori Foraaret karakteriseres (Spring Landscape).

After a few years of diligent work painting landscapes in Jutland and the north of Zealand, he began to seek out a travel stipend; he was awarded one in 1848.

However, he delayed his travels until the spring of 1850 on account of the turbulent times around the European revolutions of 1848 which led to Denmark’s becoming a constitutional monarchy on June 5, 1849.

The paintings which Niels Lauritz Høyen bought from Kyhn show good development in his style.

His landscape painting ability continued to improve over the years, as exemplified by the winter scene, Kystparti ved Taarbæk (View of the Coast near Taarbæk) and Udsigt over det flade Land ved Bjærgelide (View across the Flat Land near Bjærgelide) painted in 1858, which featured the typical Danish countryside near Horsens.

He painted many landscapes in the area near Silkeborg, and spent his summers starting in 1873 at Himmelbjerg, one of Denmark’s highest points.

During the period 1871-1879, Kyhn’s studio became a gathering place for a group of young, dissatisfied artists and Academy students called the Huleakademiet (The Den Academy), which eventually led to the formation in 1882 of The Artists' Independent Studio Schools (Kunstnernes Frie Studieskoler).

More than 75 women trained under him, including Anna Ancher, Ville Bang, Johanne Krebs, Emilie Mundt, Marie Luplau, Emmy Thornam, Elise Konstantin-Hansen,[3] Nicoline Tuxen, and Margrethe Backer Welhaven.

He portrayed a more naturalistic landscape than previously, one that was anchored in careful study and with an immediacy made possible through open-air painting.

He chose to feature and glorify the landscapes of his native land, exploring especially the countryside near his home in Jutland.