Walter Rane (born 1949) is an American painter and illustrator known for book illustrations and religious art. Rane was born in

National City, California National City is a city located in the South Bay (San Diego County), South Bay region of the San Diego metropolitan area, in southwestern San Diego County, California, San Diego County, California. The population was 58,582 at the 2010 United ...

and raised in Southern California. He obtained a

Bachelor of Fine Arts A Bachelor of Fine Arts (BFA) is a standard undergraduate degree for students for pursuing a professional education in the visual, fine or performing arts. It is also called Bachelor of Visual Arts (BVA) in some cases. Background The Bachelor ...

at the

Art Center College of Design Art Center College of Design (stylized as ArtCenter College of Design) is a private art college in Pasadena, California. History ArtCenter College of Design was founded in 1930 in downtown Los Angeles as the Art Center School. In 1935, Fred R. ...

Pasadena, California Pasadena ( ) is a city in Los Angeles County, California, northeast of downtown Los Angeles. It is the most populous city and the primary cultural center of the San Gabriel Valley. Old Pasadena is the city's original commercial district. I ...

.Merritt, Brett
"Book of Mormon stories: Paintings depict tender scenes of scripture"
''

Daily Herald (Utah) The ''Daily Herald'' is a daily newspaper that covers news and community events in Utah County, central Utah. Much of the coverage focuses on the Provo-Orem metropolitan area in Utah Valley. The ''Daily Herald'' is owned by Ogden Newspapers. Th ...

'', 4 September 2004. Retrieved on 9 April 2021.

Career

Rane began his career as a book and magazine illustrator in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

.Gagon, Dave
"Painting sacred stories"
''

Deseret News The ''Deseret News'' () is the oldest continuously operating publication in the American west. Its multi-platform products feature journalism and commentary across the fields of politics, culture, family life, faith, sports, and entertainment. Th ...

'', 12 September 2000. Retrieved on 9 April 2021. Some of his clients were

Random House Random House is an American book publisher and the largest general-interest paperback publisher in the world. The company has several independently managed subsidiaries around the world. It is part of Penguin Random House, which is owned by Germ ...

Reader's Digest ''Reader's Digest'' is an American general-interest family magazine, published ten times a year. Formerly based in Chappaqua, New York, it is now headquartered in midtown Manhattan. The magazine was founded in 1922 by DeWitt Wallace and his wi ...

Bantam Books Bantam Books is an American publishing house owned entirely by parent company Random House, a subsidiary of Penguin Random House; it is an imprint of the Random House Publishing Group. It was formed in 1945 by Walter B. Pitkin, Jr., Sidney B. ...

, and

National Geographic ''National Geographic'' (formerly the ''National Geographic Magazine'', sometimes branded as NAT GEO) is a popular American monthly magazine published by National Geographic Partners. Known for its photojournalism, it is one of the most widely ...

. Rane illustrated ''Meet Kit: An American Girl'' by

Valerie Tripp Valerie Tripp (born 1951) is a children's book author, best known for her work with the ''American Girl'' book series. She grew up in Mount Kisco, New York, with three sisters and a brother. She graduated from Yale University and has a Maste ...

, ''Recapitulation'' by

Wallace Stegner Wallace Earle Stegner (February 18, 1909 – April 13, 1993) was an American novelist, short story writer, environmentalist, and historian, often called "The Dean of Western Writers". He won the Pulitzer Prize in 1972 and the U.S. National Book ...

, and ''In This Our Life'' by

Ellen Glasgow Ellen Anderson Gholson Glasgow (April 22, 1873 – November 21, 1945) was an American novelist who won the Pulitzer Prize for the Novel in 1942 for her novel ''In This Our Life''. She published 20 novels, as well as short stories, to critical ac ...

. He also illustrated the

Franklin Library The Franklin Mint is a private mint founded by Joseph Segel in 1964 in Wawa, Pennsylvania. The building is in Middletown Township. The brand name was previously owned by Sequential Brands Group headquartered in New York City, New York. It is ...

1978 edition of

William Faulkner William Cuthbert Faulkner (; September 25, 1897 – July 6, 1962) was an American writer known for his novels and short stories set in the fictional Yoknapatawpha County, based on Lafayette County, Mississippi, where Faulkner spent most of ...

's ''Absalom, Absalom'', and the 1980 edition of

Walker Percy Walker Percy, OSB (May 28, 1916 – May 10, 1990) was an American writer whose interests included philosophy and semiotics. Percy is noted for his philosophical novels set in and around New Orleans; his first, ''The Moviegoer'', won the Nat ...

's ''The Moviegoer''.

LDS Church art

In the early 1990s

the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, informally known as the LDS Church or Mormon Church, is a Nontrinitarianism, nontrinitarian Christianity, Christian church that considers itself to be the Restorationism, restoration of the ...

(LDS Church) asked him to begin creating works of art on religious themes. Many of his works depict scenes described in the

Book of Mormon The Book of Mormon is a religious text of the Latter Day Saint movement, which, according to Latter Day Saint theology, contains writings of ancient prophets who lived on the American continent from 600 BC to AD 421 and during an interlude date ...

while others focus on events in the life of

Jesus Christ Jesus, likely from he, יֵשׁוּעַ, translit=Yēšūaʿ, label=Hebrew/Aramaic ( AD 30 or 33), also referred to as Jesus Christ or Jesus of Nazareth (among other names and titles), was a first-century Jewish preacher and religious ...

. He also painted events from the life of

Joseph Smith Joseph Smith Jr. (December 23, 1805June 27, 1844) was an American religious leader and founder of Mormonism and the Latter Day Saint movement. When he was 24, Smith published the Book of Mormon. By the time of his death, 14 years later, he ...

. Rane's work has appeared in the LDS Church's International Art Competition seven times. In 2002, Rane was commissioned by

Deseret Book Deseret Book () is an American publishing company headquartered in Salt Lake City, Utah, that also operates a chain of bookstores throughout the western United States. It is a wholly owned subsidiary of Deseret Management Corporation (DMC), the ...

to paint 17 original oil paintings for the book ''By the Hand of Mormon'' depicting scenes from the Book of Mormon. One painting from the series, an image of the empty tomb titled ''He is Not Here'', has become one of Rane's most recognizable works. Rane painted a large mural at the LDS Visitors Center at Winter Quarters in Omaha, Nebraska. Some of his original paintings appear in the

LDS Conference Center The Conference Center, in Salt Lake City, Utah, is the premier meeting hall for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church). Completed in 2000, the 21,000-seat Conference Center replaced the traditional use of the nearby Salt ...

, the Relief Society Building, and the

Church Office Building The Church Office Building is a 28-story building in Salt Lake City, Utah, which houses the administrative support staff for the lay ministry of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church) throughout the world.Taylor, Scott"For 3 ...

Personal life

Rane and his wife, Linda, are the parents of four children and live in

New York City, NY New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Un ...

. Rane is a member of the LDS Church.

Awards and honors

In 2006 Rane was the recipient of the Associate Directors Award at the 21st annual Spiritual and Religious Arts Show at the

Springville Museum of Art The Springville Museum of Art in Springville, Utah, United States is the oldest museum for the visual fine arts in Utah. In 1986, the building was listed on the National Register of Historic Places. As of 2012, the museum's director is Rita Wrig ...

. His work is included in the permanent collections of the

Church History Museum The Church History Museum, formerly the Museum of Church History and Art, is the premier museum operated by the Church History Department of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church). It is located in Salt Lake City, Utah, and ...

, the Springville Museum of Art, and

Southern Virginia University Southern Virginia University (SVU) is a private liberal arts college in Buena Vista, Virginia. The college, though not officially affiliated with a particular faith, embraces the values of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Ch ...

. In 2013, his work was showcased at the 10th Annual Shenandoah Invitational Art Gala at Southern Virginia University.King, Hannah
"10th Annual Art Gala to Feature Walter Rane"
''

'', 16 September 2013. Retrieved on 9 April 2021.

References

External links

Walter Rane
Official Website
Walter Rane Fine Art Prints
{{DEFAULTSORT:Rane, Walter Living people 1949 births American Latter Day Saints Art Center College of Design alumni American illustrators Latter Day Saint artists Artists from Salem, Oregon