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Pokémon Creator Profile: Mitsuhiro Arita - A talk with one of the most prolific illustrators in the history of the Pokémon TCG
Even if you don't recognize the name of artist Mitsuhiro Arita, you've almost certainly seen his work. He's been illustrating Pokémon Trading Card Game cards for more than 20 years—ever since the very first cards were introduced in Japan in 1996. His art can be seen on more than 500 cards, including some of the most memorable cards in the history of the game. Mr. Arita's legacy and impact on the Pokémon TCG—and on the world of Pokémon in general—is profound.
We recently had a chance to sit down with Mr. Arita in Tokyo. Though he typically works out of his home studio, he was kind enough to meet with us at the offices of Creatures Inc., the company responsible for development of the Pokémon TCG.
Like other artists who illustrate cards for the Pokémon TCG, Mr. Arita is not a full-time employee of Creatures, allowing him the freedom to work on many other projects as well. Mr. Arita says Pokémon has been the main focus of his artistic career, but he would never have guessed that would be the case when he began. In Japan, it took about a year for Pokémon to really take off after it debuted, so Mr. Arita essentially had no idea that Pokémon would be the global phenomenon it is now.