Pokémon Trading Card Game Artist Spotlight: Yuu Nishida

Throughout the years, the Pokémon Trading Card Game has featured a variety of incredible art styles. Now that the hobby has been around for more than a quarter of a century, we have seen the artwork of Pokémon TCG cards elevated by daring new artist choices as well as illustrators who have been veteran contributors since the very first releases. Let’s take a journey through the eye-popping, mind-expanding history of Pokémon TCG artwork by exploring some of the hobby’s most interesting and unique artists. Today, we will spotlight Yuu Nishida.

Yuu Nishida began contributing to the hobby when she won the first-ever Pokémon TCG Illustration Grand Prix with the above Gardevoir card. A report from the official contest site says that Nishida wishes to “fill the viewer with warmth” with her cards. She has been contributing cards to sets ever since her winning Gardevoir became a promo card during the end of the Sun & Moon era, with her first in-set card being Celebi from Shining Fates.

Nishida has gone on to create many memorable cards spanning all types, including the memorable Cheryl Full Art Trainer from Sword & Shield – Chilling Reign which exudes the character’s kindness, the Sylveon V Alternate Art from Sword & Shield – Evolving Skies that turned a cute bakery scene into a highly sought after chase card, and even the stunning, and sadly never printed, Katy Perry V showing the pop star with her favorite Pokémon: a female Pikachu.

The latest Yuu Nishida card further cements this artist as a major part of the hobby’s history. Nishida is the illustrator for the first-ever Sprigatito card, which is also quite notably the first card of the Scarlet & Violet era as our SV Black Star Promo 1. Be sure to check Bleeding Cool every day to follow our in-depth Pokémon TCG coverage as we explore the hobby’s past, present, and even future with upcoming set reveals.