If you’re a die-hard Harry Potter fan, you’ve likely heard of MinaLima. But if that name doesn’t sound familiar, there’s a good chance you’ve seen the work of this artistic duo. This design team (Miraphora Mina and Eduardo Lima, who operate under the combined name “MinaLima”) were the designers behind nearly every graphic prop in the Harry Potter movies, from the iconic Mauraders’ Map and the Daily Prophet to the Hogwarts Letter that Harry gets in the very first movie.
Their design studio, The House of MinaLima, has stayed connected to the Wizarding World in countless ways over the past two decades, but their most recent venture is a series of illustrated editions of the Harry Potter novels. Their edition of Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone debuted last October, while their Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets was officially released today.
The new book not only features full-color (and mostly full-page) illustrations throughout, but it also has some interactive elements that will appeal to fans of any age. These include a version of The Burrow with lift-flaps that reveal its interior, a pop-up version of the entrance to Dumbledore’s office, and a Mandrake that you can pull out of its pot.
These illustrated editions don’t replicate the work that MinaLima did for the Harry Potter movies, though. In fact, these two books have allowed Mina and Lima to create an entirely new visual style for a world they were already so familiar with.
An upside to working on the books, the duo explains, is that they have been less bound by the practical limitations that came with creating film pieces. The visuals they create for the novels can be far more fantastical since they don’t have to actually be produced. However, Lima explains, this vaster creative control also means that MinaLima has a lot more world-building responsibility. “Now we have new challenges as well, like casting, hair and makeup, and costumes,” he says. “We were kind of like the film directors this time!”
The MinaLima Edition of Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets is available to purchase now from the links below. Fans can also check out more of the duo’s work on the House of MinaLima website or at the House of MinaLima section of the new Harry Potter Flagship Store in New York City (where you can also purchase their illustrated editions!)
