When he was eight years old, Tim lost an eye in an accident. During his recovery, his father gave him oil paints, a couple of brushes, and a small canvas. He painted a clown with colors straight from the tube. Tim’s first work was promptly framed, and his love of painting was born.
Tim earned a degree in graphic design from Wichita State University and also studied painting and drawing for a semester in Rome. Following school, Tim worked as an associate art director of an advertising design studio in Wichita, Kansas.
Then for seventeen years Tim served as a community minister with an inner-city Christian mission organization in Wichita, Los Angeles, and Newark. To help meet the need for children’s books that accurately depict urban culture, he created the picture book Psalm Twenty-Three, in which he applied the psalmist David’s pastoral words to a normal day of two city children.
Tim has illustrated a number of children’s books, two of which, The Fear Not Angel and Psalm Twenty-Three were Gold-Medallion Award finalists. Psalm Twenty-Three and Silent Night were also honored with ABA “Pick of the Lists” awards. Tim serves as a graphic artist for World Impact Urban Ministry Institute and lives in Wichita, Kansas.
The Beatitudes
Written by Carole Boston Weatherford
Illustrated by Tim Ladwig
Since the earliest days of slavery, African Americans have called on their religious faith in the struggle against oppression.
In this book the Beatitudes — from Jesus’ famous Sermon on the Mount — form the backdrop for Carole Boston Weatherford’s powerful free-verse poem that traces the African American journey from slavery to civil rights.
Tim Ladwig’s stirring illustrations showcase a panorama of heroes in this struggle, from the slaves shackled in the hold of a ship to the first African American president taking his oath of office on the steps of the United States Capitol.
Good King Wenceslas
Written by John M. Neale
Illustrated by Tim Ladwig
This story, based on actual events that occurred in the tenth century, tells of a kind-hearted king and his page who set out to help a poor man on a cold winter’s night and experience a miracle along the way. Tim Ladwig’s energetic paintings bring new life to the familiar words and remind readers of all ages that helping others is a blessing.
The Lord’s Prayer
Tim Ladwig
Ages 5-10
The beloved words of The Lord’s Prayer serve as the text for this remarkable book, in which Tim Ladwig illustrates how the words of this ancient prayer can have real meaning in our lives today.
In Tim’s paintings, a young girl and her father spend a day together helping an elderly neighbor. The love and guidance the child experiences in her relationship with her dad reflect the heart and will of our Heavenly Father in concrete ways children of all ages will understand.
Psalm Twenty-Three
Tim Ladwig
Ages 5-9
Through poignant, heart-warming images of an urban African-American family, children experience the comfort and encouragement this favorite psalm still offers–the powerful message that they can rely on the Lord as they thread their way through the risk-filled maze of daily life in the city.
When Daddy Prays
Written by Nikki Grimes
Tim Ladwig
In this collection of new poems by Nikki Grimes, a child learns about prayer from his father, whose prayers carry the family through each day — no matter what the circumstances.
Nikki Grimes believes that spirituality and prayer are signs of true strength and power. When Daddy Prays celebrates fathers who help their children see this. Nikki writes, “In my view there is no more powerful image than that of a strong man bowing before God.” And illustrator Tim Ladwig has created remarkable images, rich with tenderness.
