Snow, which at once sharpens, obscures, and shapes a landscape, has always been a rich subject for artists, and Christoph Niemann’s latest cover explores some of its stranger qualities. (It hasn’t been a snowy winter in New York, but there’s been enough to make the image feel apt.) We recently talked to Niemann about his process and some of his favorite animations.
This cover is the result of both digital and analog methods. Can you tell us more about that process?
That mix was the interesting aspect of the process! I’ve done a rainy-day cover, in which I tried to create a simplified rendition of drops on a window. Here I wanted to do the same thing with snow. Specifically, I wanted to play with the fact that snow appears dark in front of a light background and white in front of a dark background, such as a building.
Niemann’s early version involved cut paper and circles made with a hole puncher.
Initially, I tried to create that effect with a hole puncher. I liked the look, but it felt a bit too messy. Then I turned it into a pixel drawing, which allowed me to connect the character to the background—but I missed the roundness of the paper snowflakes, so I softened the pixels to round shapes. The last real challenge was to apply this effect to the animation.
Part of what’s interesting here is that every element is reduced to its base qualities. What made you choose those elements: a bicycle, a bridge, snow falling?
It’s an experience that a lot of people have had, but it’s also a very personal experience. Everyone thinks that they’re the only one who really knows what it feels like. It’s a bit uncomfortable—windy, cold, wet, slippery—but also poetic. There are the faint silhouettes, the muffled sound. The beauty of an abstract drawing is that it lets a reader project her own memories onto the composition.
A detail from Niemann’s cut-paper version and a digital sketch with square pixels.
You split your time between Berlin and New York. Is there anything special about New York that brings you back?
Friends and work, obviously. But another essential draw is going for runs. Running over the Brooklyn Bridge is beautiful but tricky. After around 7 A.M., there are way too many people, so I like to go when it rains or snows. It’s much less crowded.
Your animated image feels modern, but it also evokes works such as “Out of the Inkwell,” from the early days of animation. Are there one or two animators you especially admire?
Winsor McCay’s “Gertie the Dinosaur” is a favorite. But, in terms of pure animation aesthetic, my all-time favorites are the Walt Disney Sport Goofy clips. I could watch them for hours!
See below for more covers that celebrate snow in New York:
