San Diego Comic Con Hogwarts

If you’re the sort to keep an ear to the ground of the pop culture landscape, you may have already realized this, but this year marks the twentieth anniversary of ‘Harry Potter’. (In the United States, at least.)

Can we take a moment to let that sink in?

After all, if you’re a reader of a certain age, you quite literally grew up alongside Harry, Hermione, and the rest. And that would be momentous enough, for the audience that grew up with these stories to hit that milestone. But of course, it’s bigger than that. Over the past two decades ‘Harry Potter’ has proved itself an intergenerational touchstone, akin to ‘Star Wars’ or ‘The Lord of the Rings‘. And with new content (most notably the ongoing series of ‘Fantastic Beasts’ films) continuing to be produced under the ‘Wizarding World’ banner, we can rest secure in the knowledge that we’re all likely to grow old with J.K. Rowling’s world.

But anniversaries like this are always more about celebrating the past than peering into the future. And to that end, US ‘Potter’ publisher Scholastic is taking San Diego Comic-Con to Hogwarts! In the form of an anniversary event, that is. On Saturday, July 21st, Room 6DE of the San Diego Convention Center will play host 20 Years of Magic: Inside ‘Harry Potter’. The centerpiece of the occasion will be a panel, featuring a murderers row of ‘Potter’ artists, including Jim Kay (of the illustrated editions), Kazu Kibuishi (cover artist for the 15th anniversary editions), Brian Selznick (cover artist for the newly published 20th anniversary editions), and the original American illustrator herself, Mary GrandPre. In addition to these illustrious illustrators, American editor Arthur A. Levine and ‘Harry Potter’ creative director David Saylor will also be in attendance.

But wait, there’s more! Attendees will leave the event with posters commemorating the evolution of the both the character’s depiction and the series’ visual style over the last two decades. The poster, exclusively revealed by Entertainment Weekly, can be seen below:

Be sure to check back with ScienceFiction.com in the coming days for more from San Diego Comic Con!