I’ve been working on snowscapes through a relatively mild winter here in Upstate New York.
Although it may seem counter-intuitive, watercolor lends itself to painting winter scenes and snow scenes with snow, because the amount of white in front of you forces you to save more white on your paper. The focus can then often change to simply shapes. My focus in this little sketch of a painting was on the blue shadows. I love the bloom in the foreground. Some watercolor painters avoid blooms, but I am usually interested in what they can add to a painting. In this painting they contributed to an icy feel.
I used a small amount of gouache on the branches.
Below is another snowscape, this one of a farm. Here a bloom in painting the dark trees against the damp sky colors created a soft look that negates the need to paint the trees separately. Originally these were perhaps a little more distinct, but then, to finish the picture, I added another layer of blue over most of the image, and the effect was softened even further.
