Image: Nathan Lockard / Karen McKenna
It began with a Zelda T-shirt.
I was wearing my “It’s dangerous to go alone! Take this.” shirt while running a quick errand at the bank. The teller spotted it. He was at least 20 years younger than me, but his “Nice shirt!” comment kicked off a lengthy conversation about our shared Nintendo fandom.
Before long, he pulled out a tablet and showed me his digital fan art. It was awesome: detailed, dynamic sketches of Mario, Pokémon, and (my favourite) Metroid characters. His passion was apparent.
I told him I was thrilled by his drawings, because I know how much that work means. You see, years ago, I had a job at Nintendo that involved seeing hundreds of pieces of original Nintendo fan art. And I took some home.
This is the story of that collection, and how a handful of drawings, once marked for the landfill, became some of the most meaningful pieces of my gaming collection.
Image: Grant GM
Player’s Pulse and a Pile of Precious Paper
This will definitely date me, but I interned at Nintendo during the second half of 1996. Before long, I was given complete control of Player’s Pulse, the letters to the editor section. I chose fan letters, wrote responses, and, most importantly, picked the envelope art that was displayed on those pages.
Mind you, this was nearly three decades ago, so the letters and the artwork were on real, physical paper, sent via snail mail. This was before the days of email and file shares.
I absolutely loved sifting through the envelope art because it was pure fandom: earnest, expressive, and often beautiful.
I was shocked to learn that it was Nintendo’s practice to destroy all artwork after it had been screened and scanned for the magazine! That meant dozens, maybe hundreds, of amateur art pieces in the trash bin each month.
It felt criminal to toss that effort, so I kept all the artwork that came across my desk during my short internship.
Here are five pieces of art that define the long journey of that collection:
Naomi Chiba’s Envelopes
Years after I left Nintendo Power, I read a Kotaku article about Naomi Chiba, easily the most prolific Player’s Pulse artist ever. While reading, I remembered that I had three of her original envelopes in my collection!
Image: Nathan Lockard / Naomi Chiba
With help from the author, I connected with Naomi and arranged to return her artwork.
Doing so was surprisingly emotional. I hesitated when it came time to seal the envelope, but then it occurred to me that she might be the first person to ever get back the artwork that they had sent to Nintendo Power.
That’s when it hit me: this coloured paper meant something.
Quid pro Quo with Seth
The success with Naomi led me to find more artists.
Seth Hatland came next. He was so grateful to get his Mega Man X and Mario drawings back that he insisted on trading them for a brand-new piece of art as a thank you. “I’ve gotten slightly better,” he said.
What an understatement!
He sent me an incredible piece of Link that has hung proudly in my office ever since.
Images: Nathan Lockard / Seth Hatland, Nathan Lockard / Seth Hatland
The Big Trade
After returning art to several more creators, I was connected with Stephan Reese (aka ArtofNP) and his non-profit Interactive Art Collection. They specialise in original Nintendo Power artwork, although he hadn’t seen much in the way of envelope art – probably because Nintendo had destroyed it all.
I ultimately agreed to add most of my remaining collection to his museum.
Image: Nathan Lockard
In return, Stephan sent me an original, professional piece made for the promotional brochure of the Nintendo Super System arcade, circa 1992. I love it almost as much as the amateur stuff, plus I’m happy to know that the rest of the fan art is in a better place than a binder on my shelf.
Image: Nathan Lockard
(I’m the “ex-Nintendo employee” mentioned in the Nintendo Life post about Stephan’s exhibit a couple of years ago.)
The One I Kept
After all that wheeling and dealing, I was left with one volume’s worth of envelopes, which hangs in my game room. Here’s Volume 92 in all its glory:
Image: Nathan Lockard
Family Fan Art
The most recent additions to my art collection are courtesy of my own kids. Is there anything better than a child’s imagination and fandom put to paper?
My oldest is studying art at Utah State University, but her early work continues to remind me that fan art isn’t just a fun hobby; sometimes it’s a training ground.
Images: Nathan Lockard
When I look at my art collection, I don’t see discarded mail. I see a bond between the creatives at a massive entertainment company and their fans.
My new bank teller friend, with his portfolio of beautiful, detailed digital sketches, is part of a timeless, vital tradition. He’s doing what fans, including my own daughter, have done for decades: translating their hobby into a personal act of creation.
I may have initially ‘stolen’ art from Nintendo, but in the end, that art taught me a lesson: the true heart of a gaming community isn’t some corporate office. It’s the enduring, incredible passion of its talented fans.
What piece of gaming art — fan-made or official — means the most to you? Let us know in the comments, and enjoy this gallery of just some of the treasures I rescued almost 30 years ago…
Image: Nathan Lockard / Karen McKenna
Image: Nathan Lockard / Marjorie Rishel
Image: Nathan Lockard / Jim Malie
Image: Nathan Lockard / Marisa Arias
Image: Nathan Lockard / Mireille Jacques
Image: Nathan Lockard / Keni Yamamoto
Image: Nathan Lockard / Jose Rodriguez
Image: Nathan Lockard / Ryan Duel
Image: Nathan Lockard / Ryan Henke
Image: Nathan Lockard / Todd Prescott
Images: Nathan Lockard / Bridget Dale, Nathan Lockard / Tracy Yardley, Nathan Lockard / Frequin N.C. Root, Nathan Lockard / Brandy JJ Stetts
Nathan cut his teeth on Atari 2600, and despite being voted “Most likely to run Nintendo” in high school, the best he managed was working on the Nintendo Power staff for a bit. He helped name the OG 151 Pokémon, and is suffering from PTSD after working on the player’s guide for Yoshi’s Story.