Drawing Winter Snow Scenes

Many Northern Hemisphere readers might be looking forward to a White Christmas. I just love the dramatic landscapes created by snow - everything is completely transformed by the blanket of white. Of course, I live in an area where snow is strictly for sport (at least until Global Warming finishes off our Alpine regions) and don't have to shovel a driveway or drive to work on icy roads. But if you're enjoying your winter landscape, why not get out there in your snow gear and do some sketching, or rug up inside and draw the view from your window, or from a reference photo.

A little while ago, Forum member Starrpoint* took some beautiful photographs of snowy landscapes for us to share, suggesting that they might be a good subject for drawing. There's a snow-covered park bench, a frozen creek, and a deer in the snow. Don't be daunted by the amount of white in a snow picture: use the same principles as you do with any subject, looking for darks, highlights, mid-tones and the graduations in between; or for a line drawing, look for key edges and use implied line and broken line to suggest snow contours.

5x7 format drawings make great gift cards. You can purchase art-paper cards in standard sizes, or just use a piece of heavy Bristol paper or Stonehenge, cut to size, scored and folded. A light spray of fixative can be useful to prevent smudging, as cards are often handled, or you might like to attach a protective plastic sleeve. Original artwork is a wonderful gift, if you are sure that the recipient will appreciate it. If you'd like to give a framed piece, choose a suitable frame first, and work to fit that size. Consider a set - a 'suite' - of drawings of the same subject from various angles, in a group frame or matching frames.

Starrpoint's Winter Snow Reference Photos
Tips on drawing winter snow
Post your drawing on the forum