Luke Pearson's Hilda

A while ago, I read a graphic novel my dad picked up called Hildafolk. I loved it instantly, for its simple style and folklore elements, as well as the character design.

The second book in the series, Hilda and the Midnight Giant, has a lot more complexity in the character design. It is interesting to see how Luke Pearson's art style changes through the books.

For the second book, Pearson has delved into more detail for his backgrounds and character design. Still, there is still the feeling that the art style is not fully established. Many elements are complex, while other designs are simple - and the most effective panels and moments are the ones where there isn't too much visual detail.

The third book, Hilda and the Bird Parade, has a more established art style, that is "rounder" and uses the environment of the city to build up simple detail, rather than focusing on tiny details. It was also exciting to see the development of human character design, which had been lacking in the previous books, as they had been set in the valley with the only human characters being Hilda and her mother.

I was able to find comparisons of Hilda, her mother, and her pet Twig online, comparing the style of the three across the first three books.

I think Pearson's work is a testament to the power of good colour choices, simple but confident linework, and character design. I think his most powerful character designs are the simplest ones, which evolves naturally. The designs are cute, but not overly pandering. I would love to develop a style similar to this.