Harlan was born within a stones throw of the eastern end of the Pacific Electric’s Westgate Line in the original community of Sawtelle now known as West Los Angeles.
He grew up riding steam on the Southern Pacific and Santa Fe after World War II and helped his father build miniature live steam locomotives which gave him his love of steam and technical knowledge necessary to do his paintings and drawings.
Harlan has illustrated for books dealing with steam railroads and trolley subjects from 1962 through 1984. His paintings are sought after by collectors and railroad enthusiast’s world wide. His prints of the famous Transcontinental Railroad’s “Jupiter” and “119” are sold at the historic site in Utah. Copies of his painting of the Daylight Engine “4449” in Freedom Train colors were presented to many of the crew and engineer Doyle McCormack during our bicentennial celebration. For Disneyland’s 45th anniversary a painting of Walt’s 1st engine “C.K. Holliday” was created for a limited edition print.
Harlan is a volunteer docent at the Lomita Railroad Museum. And is a second generation member of the Southern California Live Steamers in Torrance, California.
He is a former member of the American Institute of Fine Arts and the National Model Railroad Association.
Harlan is listed on “Ask Art” web site.
Harlan is a self taught artist who works in what he calls “Realistic Impressionism,” doing implied detail in oil, acrylic, pen & ink, graphite and colored pencils.
He works today in the studio that his father built onto the family home over 50 years ago working full time doing paintings and drawings of a variety of subjects besides his specialty of railroad art.
Besides his love for art, Harlan is an avid model builder who works from scratch in On30 scale and is an amateur astronomer.
Harlan lives with his wife, Theresa, of over 40 years in their West Los Angeles home.