Where a well-loved story meets emotionally driven art.

We all have a favorite tale written by a talented author, and Tyler Lanter brings the energies and life from those tales to life through fantasy realism illustrations and a pure love for a well-told story.

Tyler Lanter of Lanter Illustrations

“I'm originally from Tallahassee, Florida, and I served in the U.S. Army as an Infantryman. I’ve been drawing on and off for about 10 years, but it wasn’t until the past year that I really started taking it seriously especially within the digital art and social media space. After leaving the military, I found my way back to art as a way to decompress and reconnect with something I’ve always been passionate about.

“These days, I work from home, which gives me a bit of flexibility, but most of my creating happens late at night after my 2-year-old daughter is asleep. A lot of my inspiration comes from books I’ve read fantasy especially and I love bringing those stories to life visually. At the heart of it, I just want to make art that connects with people and brings them a bit of joy.”

Album cover art for Mearinga's Lullaby

Tyler’s work is expressive and atmospheric, breathing life into moments most of us only imagine in our heads using texture and mood. Working in primarily a digital medium, he mostly enjoys creating works inspired by fantasy novels with complex world building, and characters with vibrant and rich stories.

“Whether it's a lone figure in a foggy forest or a burst of silver-blue magic in a darkened sky, I’m drawn to the quiet drama of a scene. I like the moments that makes you pause and really think and see yourself in the scene.”

Vader

While creating is something Tyler couldn’t live without, like many artists, he sort of stumbled into the passion. Being a medically retired Army veteran, he chose to pursue a career in teaching where he worked specifically with school children in special education. When his first child entered his world, he chose to spend more time at home and focus on his family, and in doing so he began working from home ultimately freeing up some time to also finish earning his B.A in International Affairs.

Naturally, art had always been a method of expression that remained with him, even while it wasn’t a focal point for many years. For a decade, Tyler’s days were littered with sketches in quiet moments, until after picking up a digital medium when he found himself immersed in this new world where a story could be told through light, texture, and mood in a way he hadn’t experienced before.

“I never went to art school, and I don’t have a formal degree in art, but I’ve learned by doing, by failing, and by chasing that spark that says this matters. Creating things that make people happy is what it is all about for me. Now, I can’t imagine not creating. It’s become a huge part of who I am.”

A village scene from Shield of Sparrows

As much as any artist could talk about their work for hours - even days, it’s truly incredible how he speaks about his work. Not only is the drive and love for his work visible in the art he creates, there’s also much to be said in how he speaks about his process and the creation of these beautiful worldscapes.

“My favorite part of the creative process is that moment when the sketch has shape, the colors are flowing, and the image begins to speak back to you. It’s the part where things click, where instinct and intention start to align. That scary moment when you think wow this looks terrible, but you know you have to trust the process and then it all starts to look better and better with each pass of the brush. I also really love the lighting phase of a piece. I enjoy sculpting the mood with glow, shadows, and contrast to create a piece that really resonates with the viewer.

There’s nothing quite like seeing a blank canvas slowly turn into something that feels alive.”

Tyler has a loyal following on Instagram, where he’s built an immersive community of story-lovers, readers, authors, and even other artists who he’s inspired by and are in turn inspired by him.

You can find more of his work and join his beautiful community at @readingbythelantern on instagram or his website, LanterIllustrations.com

He just wrapped up a pop up at Five Points Fest at the end of August and has plans to attend the Burning Pages masquerade ball October 30th. He is truly a joy to visit with, so if you see him, it’s worth it to flag him down and chat all things fantasy, art, and books.

Tyler has also worked with musicians to create album cover art, and just finished a piece to be featured in an upcoming fantasy novel.

I absolutely loved interviewing Tyler. He has such a way with words, and when he talks about his inspirations it really brought those feelings, that often can’t be described, to life. I personally would love to see more authors do a deep dive into his work and possibly even collaborate. He has a way of bringing characters and scenes to life, and does so in a medium I personally find so hard to learn. I hope you find his work just as emotionally gripping, and follow along in his world. - Aubrey