Paul Lanquist is a leading contemporary illustrator who blends classic storytelling with high technology to make popular poster art that tells the story of America.

In the shadow of Mount St. Helens volcano, where the folklore of Big Foot and the legend of D.B. Cooper were born, Lanquist has created more than 1,000 destination posters in a converted horse stable next to his house in Ariel, Wa.

Lanquist, the son of Bert and Gladys Lanquist, grew up in a red-white-and-blue-collar home in Bakersfield, Calif. with his sister Cheryl. He got his start working as a freelance illustrator for many Luhr Jensen Northwest chains like Fred Meyer and GI Joe's. But he has a uniquely American past, which his work

embodies, often celebrating America’s rugged individualist and its pioneer spirit.

His clients include Boeing Museum of Flight, the National Park Service and dozens of tourism destinations across the country and Canada.

“Paul captures such a spirit of place. You get a sense that you are really there in the poster, right down to the clothesline fluttering in the breeze. His poster captured the essence of Lancaster County so much that you can practically smell the cows,” Scott Standish, Director of Heritage Planning, Lancaster County, Pa.