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Apolar

New covers for Harry Potter

I have always liked to draw since I was young. I was influenced by my dad who’s really into art. I tried sports and a lot of other stuff, but art is what I enjoyed the most. When traveling, I always carried a sketchbook with me. Then it kind of became a habit of mine to draw. When I studied architecture at Chula, I kind of stopped drawing ‘cause the study of architecture focuses more on practical techniques—I did a lot of model-cutting. In my fourth year of college, I met someone who graduated from a really famous university in the States, the graduates of which have gone to work in well-known companies like The Walt Disney Company and Pixar. This opened my eyes to these kinds of schools, and it ignited the idea of going into a different field after I finish my bachelor’s in architecture. I wanted to pick up where I left off with drawing and I wanted to discover myself more, so I decided too create a portfolio, which is the most important thing when applying to a college in this field. That’s when I created my Facebook page, Apolar, to post my drawings. 

I still remember the first time that my dad read Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone to me when I was just a nine-year-old boy as a bedtime story, which soon led me to the reading world myself. I was amazed by the story and the wonderful artwork by Mary GrandPré. The wizarding world that J.K. Rowling had created totally changed my perception of the magical world, it opened new doors to unlimited imagination and creativity.

Never in my life did I dream of becoming an illustrator responsible for designing a version of this series.

I made sure that I put all my effort, my heart and my soul into this project as I would like this version to be like a love letter from fan to fan. From inside of each Hogwarts house to the appearance of each character, I tried to make the details as accurate as I could.

The covers and interior artwork depict key characters and moments from the books as well as plenty of localised touches to delight Thai fans.

There were no real limitations to what I could do, but the images that stuck in my head were those from international editions, like the 20th anniversary American edition and other remade versions from several countries. I saw that they weren’t too cartoony nor very stylized. The Harry Potter books drawn by other artists are somewhere between stylized and realistic. I like the stylized style because I’m personally impressed with Mary GrandPré, the illustrator of the original Thai version. [Her art] is kid-friendly and not too realistic. And I love a balance like this. I wanted my version to also appeal to kids because it was when I was a kid that I read Harry Potter.

At the same time, I also wanted to create details that even adults can enjoy. I also wanted the design to look international, like the works of artists from the early 20th century, the golden era of illustration, when J. C. Leyendecker and Norman Rockwell were really famous—I think the colors they used were really vintage-looking, and the lines were injected with so much craftsmanship. I wanted these books to look like they were designed at a particular time yet still have a timeliness to them. So I did some research on how to play with different textures and added these to the design. I think people can refer to my style as semi-realistic and stylized.

I wanted this cover series to have a classic feeling, like it was made back in the Golden Age of Illustration and to pay homage to the artists from that time. I wanted the character design in this version to relate to both kids and adults, so it should not be too stylised or too realistic - but well balanced between the two. I also wanted the colours to express the themes of each book, so I tried to find new interpretations for them.

Everyone has their own unique answer when it comes to their favourite element of Harry Potter. So, I told myself, “Why don’t you make this version full of memories that will act as small Easter eggs so that each fan will have fun finding their favourite things? It will be a special gift that only fans could appreciate.”

As a fan of the books myself, I understood how much the fans love this series and how big the responsibility was on my shoulders. I wanted my covers and boxset to be like a love letter that we could pass on to the next generation of fans. I am the sort of artist that doesn’t limit himself to one specific style so finding the right style for this project was incredibly challenging. I don’t want my artwork to look too digital or sharp and clean as I prefer a crafty feeling like hand paint with oil colour. I wanted the character design in this version to be relatable to both kids and adults, so it shouldn’t be too stylized or realistic but well balanced between the two. My intention was for the covers to be like a moving scenario that does not portray just one specific scene but all the fans’ favourites together.

I wanted some kind of pattern or structure for the covers for all the books in this edition. This is where I used the architectural thought process because I wanted the design to have some kind of system. So I thought of a window framing a door that opens up to the contents inside the book. When you design things architecturally, you have a plan wherein you divide a space into smaller spaces. And then in these smaller spaces, you can fit even smaller details. People will find tiny details hidden in different parts of my illustrations the more they look at it. Also, every element that I draw connects with one another. The front cover is connected to the back cover, for example. In my experience, I always get good feedback when the front cover has some kind of connection with the back. So I decided to bring back that idea.