Born in Illinois, Orlando Rouland became a painter of rural landscapes, scenes of New York City, and portraits of notable personages including Thomas Edison, Dame Nellie Melba, Sam Houston, John Muir and Theodore Roosevelt. He studied in Europe at the Julian Academy in Paris with Benjamin Constant and Jean Paul Laurens and also in London, Germany with Max Thedy, and in New York City.

Rouland’s wife was Minnie Dwight, a New York socialite who worked hard to promote her husband’s career. She was a patroness of the dancer Ruth St. Denis, and as a result of that friendship, Orlando Rouland did a painting of St. Denis performing “Cobras”.

In New York City, Rouland was a member of the Allied Artists of America, which he served as president from 1925 to 1928. He was also active in the Artist’s Professional League and the Lotos Club on behalf of exhibiting work by emerging artists.

Rouland and his wife had a summer home at Marblehead, Massachusetts where he did painting as well as at Cape Ann and Rockport. He was also a member of the Peconic Art Colony, spending summers in the Indian Neck area of Peconic, Long Island.