Winter Animal Landscapes

This lesson begins with creating a beautiful night sky background by painting with different values of blue. Then students will draw a proportional tree that is wide at the base and has skinny branches on top, which all works together to emphasize the sense of space and unique perspective of the viewer.

The illustrations in "Owl Moon" and "City Moon" served as inspiration. The gradient of blue values in the sky can be used as examples before students start creating their own night sky and, of course, this book is a great read aloud with much anticipation for the listeners as the father and son duo search the forest for owls on a quiet night. Artists also read "City Moon" so see how the sky is illuminated by the moon in a city like Philadelphia.