Snow Studies in the Peace River Region

Snow carries its own beauty, and I realize this every year as we in northern British Columbia are covered by its crisp, pure brilliance. Sun on snow is dazzling, and the shadows fall in myriad shades of blue, azure and cobalt. Our short days mean that often there is a rose tinge to the sunlit areas as the sun hovers in a constant state of either rising or setting, low on the horizon.

Driving home from town in the late afternoon, I was struck by the glow of sunset on a drift of snow just a few hundred metres from our driveway. I don't think I properly captured the glow, but I had fun painting this little snow study, just a little bigger than a greeting card.

On other days, the sun doesn't appear and the world looks a lot greyer. Still beautiful, if a bit more bleak. Can you see the deer in this painting? This is an interpretation of the road coming up the hill toward our home; my house would be just a dot, dead centre, if I had painted it in!

Even more close to home is this painting of a view from my back yard. The kids go sledding down this slope, and I as usual am distracted by the contrasts between sun and shadow. The brighter the sunlight, the darker the shadows!

And one more. Beauty doesn't have to be complex. My painting has always been about looking for beauty in simple things. Slowing down to savour what we see and experience a moment of gratitude for our gorgeous and varied world.