Great Artists
Simon Beck
Simon Beck, a British artist and former mapmaker, creates beautiful, intricate designs on frozen lakes and sandy beaches. They last only until the next snowfall or rising tide.
[Photo credit: Simon Beck, Washington Post, Jan. 8, 2026]
Since 2004, Beck has created 700 of his ephemeral designs, and aims to reach 1,000. On snow, usually on frozen lakes in the French Alps, he uses only a compass and snowshoes. He has made hundreds of patterns in the same location, a fresh canvas every time.
“The Earth is beautiful, and the snow is beautiful, and winter is beautiful,” Beck is quoted in a Washington Post story by Maggie Penman.
On beaches, he races against time as the sand must be dry enough to work with and the tides have their own timetable. He photographs his work by drone or from a perch above, and posts it online, Penman writes.
Sometimes, he says, he attracts a curious audience of skiers or beach walkers, but mostly he works alone — one man's solitary pursuit of beauty and his appreciation of the power of nature.
Read The Washington Post story: