Nathan Röhlander was commissioned by the Archdiocese of Chicago’s Liturgy Training Publications to illustrate “When You Were Baptized.” This 32-page children’s book is targeted to children, parents, grandparents, and godparents. Nathan produced 14 spreads of naturalistic paintings depicting a total of 15 characters of all different ethnicities.

LTP’s Art Director, Anna Manhart found Nathan through the Directory of Illustration. When asked about the project, Röhlander said, “It was like directing a film. I got to cast the characters, find the location, and shoot all the reference material. From contract to finish it was 12 months, with the heavy illustrating work taking about 10 months. It was the most challenging, yet rewarding illustration project in my life thus far.”

See the book!

We are inspired by Nathan’s passion for this project. Check out this video to see and hear more about his process:

Nathan Röhlander is a fine artist, illustrator, and educator. His work has been seen on the cover of Coast Magazine, Esquire, and many other periodicals. His paintings have also been included in various exhibitions and are collected nationally and internationally.

Nathan’s paintings are the center piece for many popular sets on television, such as Modern Family on ABC. He re-created a larger than life Picasso painting as a backdrop for the music video “A Long December” by the Counting Crows, and brands such as Mountain Dew, Nike, and Lexus have featured his work in commercials.

Röhlander has authored and illustrated five art educational books with Walter Foster Publishing. His two flagship books are “The Figure” and “The Head” which are both academic drawing books focusing on the human form. His books coincide with the figure courses that he teaches at Art Center College of Design.

To see more work by Nathan Rohlander, view his portfolio!