The Elder Scrolls 5: Skyrimis one of the most successful RPG sandbox games of the last decade, and countless fans around the globe are still enjoying its open world. Many of the locations it created have gone down in gaming history, including the city of Whiterun. Recently, oneSkyrimfan created and shared an impressively detailed painting of Whiterun at night.
Whiterun is the capital cityof Whiterun Hold, located in the center of the game’s Skyrim region. It serves as the commercial heart of the game and is usually packed with NPCs going about their business. At night, however, this rustic but bustling town takes on a new ambiance that some find peaceful and others find chilling.
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Redditor Sarahs_Art_Space shared a photograph of their attempt at painting the city of Whiterun at night. The result is a stylized view of a Whiterun street focusing on a single building, which appears tobe the Bannered Mare, Whiterun’s most popular tavern and inn. The rest of the street is entirely abandoned, and another building in the background seems to be dark and empty, but the Bannered Mare’s windows are bright and the nearby torches are lit. Above it, the sky is a painted gradient going from dark blue at the top to light blue at the bottom, suggesting the approach of dawn.
The painting combines very cool tones for the night sky and the street with very warm tones for the torches and the building’s wood elements. The lack of visible stars is interesting, especially sinceSkyrimhas some of the most spectacular night skies in gaming.This rendition of Whiterunis at once uncanny and welcoming - the absence of people is keenly felt, but the hints at their presence are reassuring. According to Sarahs_Art_Space, the painting was done with acrylic paints.
As of writing, it appears thatotherSkyrimfansfind Sarahs_Art_Space’s work intriguing. Several users expressed that the painting was improved by the absence of NPCs, either because it added to the eerie tone or because they just dislike seeing specific NPCs. One user stated that the painting captured how cozy Whiterun is, being a traditional Nord settlement with archaic fortifications. A second user joked that even at this hour, they would still be hammering out new items to sell Adrienne, while a third asked if the painting was available for purchase. It seems that the artist managed to capture a lot of what fans enjoy about Whiterun in this piece.
The Elder Scrolls 5: Skyrim - Anniversary Editionis out now for PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X.
