CGC Artist Showcase: Kagemaru Himeno

When it comes to trading cards, the artwork featured is — to put it mildly — significant. Some collectors focus their collections on a particular artist (or artists) due to a preference in art style, proving just how impactful an artist’s work is to a product’s success.

The CGC Artist Showcase series is a celebration of these artists’ accomplishments and contributions to our favorite TCGs. In this installment, we showcase Kagemaru Himeno, a writer and illustrator who has contributed many illustrations to the Pokémon TCG and other Pokémon-related media.

About Kagemaru Himeno

Kagemaru Himeno began her career by providing illustrations for various manga in 1994, which were published in prominent Japanese magazines such as RIBON Original. She specializes in watercolor paintings, using bright and vivid colors for foreground images and softer tones for the background. According to Himeno, she loves the paintings and illustrations she creates, which is reflected in the quality of her art.

Since starting to illustrate for the Pokémon TCG in 1997, Himeno’s illustrations have been featured in many Pokémon-related publications, including Pokémon Tales, several promotional materials for the video games and other merchandise.

Contributions to the Pokémon TCG

Himeno’s first Pokémon card illustrations were featured in Jungle, the second set of the Pokémon TCG, which was released in Japan in 1997. Since then, she has illustrated more than 600 cards in the TCG as well as 44 that appear in the Pokémon Trading Card Game Pocket mobile game. Here are some of our favorites:

The Jungle Eeveelutions

The original three evolutions of Eevee — Flareon, Jolteon and Vaporeon — were first featured in the Pokémon TCG in the Jungle set. These cards were also some of Himeno’s first contributions to the TCG. Himeno’s art style is on full display in this Flareon’s artwork; bold, bright colors make up Flareon’s body and bushy fur, while muted but beautifully blended primaries make up the background, doing much to highlight Flareon. Himeno also added a few white flecks to the background — a practice that often symbolizes cotton spores or flecks of light.

This simple yet effective watercolor illustration is nothing short of iconic, and it is still a favorite among Pokémon and Eeveelution collectors today. Himeno used a similar style when illustrating the other two Eeveelutions in the set, and most collectors will display all three together in their collections.

___’s Pikachu (Birthday Pikachu)

Yep, this iconic Black Star Promo card was illustrated by none other than Kagemaru Himeno! This example from the 25th Anniversary set was signed by Himeno in March 2025 at a CGC Signature Series signing event, then graded by CGC and encapsulated with a yellow CGC Signature Series label.

North American players were first introduced to this “Birthday” Pikachu when it was offered as a participation prize in Wizards of the Coast’s “Create a Baby Pokémon” contest. Pokémon League players who had earned the Zephyr Badge could illustrate their own Baby Pokémon on a printed template, then mail it back to Wizards of the Coast. The team would then mail back this Pikachu promo as a prize. To learn more, go here.

Vileplume GX

Over time, Himeno’s art style has developed to include more detailed backgrounds and crisper images. A good example is this Vileplume GX, which was released in Cosmic Eclipse. Instead of a muted background, Himeno instead chose to detail the background with trees, plants and sunbeams. Erika — Vileplume’s Trainer, asleep next to her Pokémon — is defined by detailed, crisp lines that show off Himeno’s attention to detail.

If you liked these cards featuring Kagemaru Himeno’s artwork, be sure to check out her X and BlueSky for more illustrations. Also, keep an eye out for more CGC Artist Showcase columns in the future.

About CGC

Since revolutionizing comic book grading in 2000, CGC has grown to include certification services for a vast variety of pop culture collectibles. These divisions include CGC Cards, CGC Video Games and CGC Home Video. CGC Cards provides expert card grading for sports cards, TCGs and non-sports cards. CGC Video Games is dedicated to video game grading for the most popular consoles, including Nintendo, Sega, Atari, PlayStation and more. CGC Home Video provides expert VHS grading in addition to other types of videocassettes, DVD, Blu-ray and more. CGC also offers seamless solutions for autograph collectors with CGC Signature Series and JSA Authentic Autograph services.

CGC is part of the Certified Collectibles Group, a global provider of expert and impartial authentication and grading services for collectibles. Since 1987, the Certified Collectibles Group companies have certified more than 110 million collectibles, including coins, banknotes, comic books, cards, autographs and stamps.