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[[File:ReneeGraef.png|right|350px]]
'''Renée Graef''' is an illustrator who has worked with American Girl for multiple [[Historical Characters|Historical Character]] books, designs, and items.

==Biography==
Renée Graef was born in Sheboygan and grew up in Greendale, a suburb of Milwaukee. She graduated from UW-Madison in 1980 with a degree in art. Much of Graef's work has a connection to her home state or nearby ones. Ms. Graef has illustrated several books for children, including newer Harper Collins editions of Laura Ingalls Wilder's ''Little House'' series.

==With American Girl==

Ms. Graef was brought into the company design early in creation, sketching and designing book covers, multiple outfits, and items for the first three Historical characters: [[Kirsten Larson]], [[Samantha Parkington]], and [[Molly McIntire]]. These include designs for what would become Kirsten's meet outfit, Molly's [[Plaid Jumper and Blouse]], Samantha's [[Buster Brown Dress]] and [[Middy Outfit]], and each character's [[Nightclothes]]. Graef said, "I created about ten boards for each character, thirty total. One board featured a placeholder sketch of each doll. The other boards depicted the Meet, School, and Holiday doll outfits for each character, and a separate illustration showed a modern-day girl wearing the same outfit. Additional boards showcased the accessories designed for each ensemble."<ref name="MakingAG">''[[The Making of American Girl]]''</ref>

She was considered for the Molly series<ref name="MakingAG"/> but later selected to illustrate the ''Kirsten'' series, side vignettes in various books, and the [[Paper Dolls]] for multiple Historical Characters.

==Illustrated Works for American Girl==
===Kirsten Series===
* ''[[Meet Kirsten]]''
* ''[[Kirsten Learns a Lesson]]''
* ''[[Kirsten's Surprise]]''
* ''[[Happy Birthday, Kirsten!]]
* ''[[Kirsten Saves the Day]]''
* ''[[Changes for Kirsten]]''
* ''[[Kirsten's Short Story Collection]]''

===Additional American Girl Works===

* Multiple [[Paper Dolls]] (and items based on them such as [[Magnetic Mini Worlds]])
* ''[[Minute Mysteries 2]]''
* ''[[Josefina's Short Story Collection]]'' (vignettes)
* ''[[Kit's Short Story Collection]]'' (vignettes)

==Other Works==
* The ''Little House'' Series and additional books
* ''My Favorite Things''
* ''The Nutcracker''
* ''If Jesus Came to Visit Me''
* ''If Jesus Walked Beside Me''
* ''Our Big, Big God''
* ''Everyday Prayers''
* ''B Is For Bookworm: A Library Alphabet''
* ''B Is for Badger: A Wisconsin Alphabet Book''
* ''Are You Sleepy Yet, Petey?''
* ''While You Were Away''
* ''Paul Bunyan's Sweetheart''
* ''3-Minute Stories: Bedtime Tales''
* ''I Am Good at Being Me''
* ''Who Carved the Mountain?: The Story of Mount Rushmore

==Links==
* [http://www.graefillustration.com/ Website]
* [https://www.instagram.com/reneegraef/ Instagram]
* [https://www.etsy.com/shop/ReneeGraef Etsy shop]
* "[https://www.channel3000.com/madison-magazine/meet-madison-an-illustrator-s-tribute-to-pleasant-rowland/article_743753f6-ab63-11ef-b188-2743d3af86b3.html Meet Madison]": an article about her illustration work for American Girl.

==References==

{{Refs}}

[[Category:Illustrators]]

{{DEFAULTSORT:Graef, Renee}}

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''This page incorporates text from [https://americangirl.fandom.com/wiki/Ren%C3%A9e_Graef the source wiki] ([https://americangirl.fandom.com/index.php?oldid=130880 exported version], [https://americangirl.fandom.com/index.php?title=Ren%C3%A9e+Graef&action=history contributor history]), under [https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/ the original text license].''

Renée Graef - Revision history

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