10 Snowy Paintings to Combat Winter Blues: December Pick of the Month

When winter’s chill settles in and the days grow short, there’s no better way to embrace the season’s quiet magic than through the lens of art. These 10 snowy masterpieces capture the beauty, whimsy, and serene stillness of the coldest months—each brushstroke a reminder that winter is not just a time of dormancy, but a canvas of its own. From bustling 16th-century villages to Impressionist snowdrifts and Japanese woodblock snowball fights, these works turn frosty days into moments of wonder, perfect for chasing away the winter blues.

1. Winter Landscape, Lucas I. van Valkenborch, circa 1535

Inspired by Pieter Bruegel the Elder, this wintry scene is a snapshot of seasonal life in full swing. Adults bustle about with essential errands—gathering firewood to ward off the cold—while rosy-cheeked children dash through the snow, pelting each other with snowballs. The thick, swirling snowflakes that blanket the landscape lend the painting an almost Impressionist softness, blurring the line between the bustling figures and the frosty world around them.

2. The Castle of Muiden in Winter, Jan Abrahamsz Beerstraaten, 1658

A stormy sky, heavy with the promise of more snow, looms over the iconic Castle of Muiden—built in the early 14th century for Count Floris V of Holland, just seven miles outside Amsterdam. But the impending flurries don’t dampen the fun below: skaters glide across the frozen ice, sledgers race down gentle slopes, and players enjoy a round of kolf, the Dutch precursor to golf. It’s a lively portrait of how winter turns even castles into playgrounds.

3. The Icebergs, Frederic Edwin Church, 1861

Hailed as Frederic Edwin Church’s magnum opus, this painting caused a sensation when it debuted at a Civil War fundraising exhibition—critics called it “the most splendid work of art that has yet been produced (in America).” Towering, jagged icebergs rise from the frigid sea, rendered with meticulous detail that highlights their raw, awe-inspiring power. Church’s mastery of light and shadow turns these frozen giants into a symbol of nature’s untamable beauty.

4. The Magpie, Claude Monet, 1868–1869

One of art history’s most beloved winterscapes, The Magpie captures a fleeting, quiet moment: a lone magpie perched atop a snow-dusted gate near Étrétat. Painted en plein air, Monet obsessed over capturing the genuine effet de neige—the luminous, almost glowing quality of snow under winter light. Yet for all its beauty, the piece was rejected by the 1869 Salon jury, a snub that now feels unimaginable given its status as an Impressionist treasure.

5. Winter, David Teniers the Younger, c. 1644

The final installment in Teniers’ seasonal series, this painting personifies winter as a wise old man, cosily wrapped in furs and velvet, warming his hands over a crackling brazier. Behind him, a frozen pond buzzes with life: skaters glide across the ice, their laughter echoing through the crisp air. It’s a charming blend of whimsy and warmth, a reminder that even the coldest season has its comforts.

6. Women and Children Playing in Snow, Utagawa Kunisada (Toyokuni III), 1830–1839

Utagawa Kunisada, one of 19th-century Japan’s most prolific ukiyo-e artists, had a soft spot for snow scenes—and this playful piece is a standout. It depicts a trio caught in the middle of a lively snowball fight: one figure cowers comically, arms raised to shield themselves, while a snowball hangs mid-air, frozen in the split second before it splatters. The dynamic poses and vivid details capture the joy of winter’s simplest pleasures.

7. The Hunters in the Snow, Pieter Bruegel the Elder, 1565

A masterpiece of the Northern Renaissance, this painting follows three hunters and their hounds as they trudge home from an unsuccessful day of hunting, their shoulders slumped with exhaustion. But the real star of the show is the village unfolding below them: smoke curls from cottage chimneys, skaters glide across frozen ponds, and children build snowmen, all bathed in the soft light of a winter afternoon. Bruegel’s genius lies in contrasting the hunters’ weariness with the vibrant, bustling life of the season.

8. Winter Scene in Moonlight, Henry Farrer, 1869

This delicate watercolour is the earliest known landscape by English-born American artist Henry Farrer—and it’s a hauntingly beautiful portrait of winter nights. Likely set in Brooklyn, where Farrer spent most of his life, the scene is bathed in the ethereal glow of moonlight, which turns the snow-covered ground into a mirror of the cornflower-blue sky. The absence of footprints lends the painting an eerie, untouched quiet, as if the viewer is the first to stumble upon this frosty wonderland.

9. Snow in New York, Robert Henri, 1902

Long before yellow taxis dominated its streets, New York City looked like this: horse-drawn carts trudge through snow-covered side streets, their wheels crunching on the ice, while buildings loom in the distance, shrouded in a wintry haze. Inspired by the Impressionists during his time in Paris, Henri captures the city’s bold yet somber atmosphere at the turn of the 20th century—an urban winter scene that feels both nostalgic and timeless.

10. The Skating Minister, Henry Raeburn, 1790s

An iconic work of Scottish art, painted during the Scottish Enlightenment, this piece depicts the Reverend Robert Walker—a friend of the artist—gliding gracefully across the frozen surface of Duddingston Loch. Dressed in his clerical robes, the minister cuts a striking figure, balancing on his skates with effortless poise. Though it’s beloved today, the painting remained largely unknown until 1949, hidden away in the Walker family’s collection for over a century.