Gabriel Pacheco is a remarkable Mexican illustrator. He became a published artist after his sister asked him to illustrate a story. Fortunately, Pacheco continued to explore his native talent and created a splendid portfolio of illustrations for children books, poetry volumes and fantastic literature.
Gabriel Pacheco, The Little Mermaid
Artists Hieronymus Bosch and Marc Chagall are mentioned as biggest inspirational sources that marked his evolution as an illustrator. Still, if you want my humble opinion, I’ll tell you that Gabriel Pacheco’s style is by far unique.
He imagines surreal, intense characters like the ones from The Tree Niñas or from El Viaje, but he also creates romantic and legendary figures like the two lovers from Lontananza or The Little Mermaid, by Hans Christian Andersen.
Pacheco also enjoys playing with colors, oscillating from vivid blue and red to sepia or different grays. Last but not least, I have to mention I adore his mix of precise, sharp lines with soft, faded ones, and the simple backgrounds that make you read the stories over and over again.