Character Designs: Twoflower

Written Description

When it comes to designing Twoflower in the sticker pack, I need to know his appearance. For this, looking at variety of sources to understand the visual elements (physical descriptions, articles of clothing..etc) that have led to the common appearance of Twoflower. The first place I looked, is that of Terry Pratchett’s own description of Twoflower, underneath is a segment taken from The Colour of Magic that discusses Twoflower’s appearance.

“It was small and skinny, and dressed very oddly in a pair of knee length britches and a shirt in such a violent and vivid conflict of colours that Weasel’s fastidious eye was offended even in the half-light.” Terry Pratchett, P12. The Colour of Magic (1983).

“The four-eyed man looked at his book” Terry Pratchett, P15. The Colour of Magic (1983).

Sir Terry Pratchett’s description of Twoflower gives off the impression of someone wearing glasses a colourful dress and the stature of a small man. The description within the book isn’t enough to get the design from, so I’ll need to look to other sources for his appearance. Fortunately there has been a lots of depictions of Twoflower from a variety of sources, from artist Paul Kidby to a live action TV depiction of the character.

Paul Kidby

Below are paintings of Twoflower painted by the artist Paul Kidby who was a friend of Terry Pratchett and has done a lot of the book covers for the series. Looking to his paintings of the character is a good cue for visual representation for Twoflower’s character.

'Discworld Massif' - 2014

“Discworld Massif” Paul Kidby (2014)

'Colour of Magic' (Rincewind and Twoflower on dragon) - 2010

“Colour of Magic (Rincewind and Twoflower on Dragon)” Paul Kidby (2012)

Kidby depicts Twoflower of that of a typical tourist, he seems Asian in appearance, sporting round glasses, a Hawaiian styled shirt and round glasses. Kidby’s depiction of Twoflower has him wearing a hat stating “I ❤ AM” in reference to “I ❤ NY” since Twoflower is depicted in the story as being a stereotypical tourist.

Josh Kirby

Related image

“The Light Fantastic” Josh Kirby (1986)

Josh Kirby produced the cover art for the first publications of a lot of the Discworld series, he was also one of the first artists to depict Discworld characters in an official manner. Below is the artwork used for the cover of the sequel to The Colour of Magic (1983), The Light Fantastic (1986).  The depiction of Twoflower in this artwork shows him wearing bizzare clothing and having a literal interpretation of four eyes. Sir Terry Pratchett later specified that the line referenced earlier “The four-eyed man looked at his book” was in reference to Twoflower wearing glasses and not actually having four eyes.

Terry Pratchett’s The Colour of Magic (TV Movie)

Twoflower is portrayed in Terry Pratchett’s The Colour of Magic by actor Sean Astin. An image of his depiction in the TV movie can be found below.

Twoflower

Sean Astin’s portrayal of Twoflower highlights a lot of similar quirks from Paul Kidby’s depiction of the character, he’s wearing a stereotypical “Hawaiian shirt” a tourist bucket hat, round glasses and shorts. Where as Kidby’s portrayal of the character is asian, the portrayal of Twoflower in the TV film is that of Caucasian.

The Discworld Collector’s Library

Image result for the colour of magic discworld collectors edition

A commemorative hardback edition of The Colour of Magic was released in 2014, part of a series called The Discworld Collector’s Library. The cover features artwork by Joe McLaren that depicts Twoflower, Rincewind and the Luggage. McLaren’s depiction of Twoflower shows round glasses, a floral Hawaiian shirt and short hair. I like the simplistic depiction of Twoflower in McLaren’s work.

In summary, what my depiction should include are the following:

  • Big round glasses
  • Brown hair
  • Hawaaiin shirt
  • Short
  • Bucket hat

Pratchett, T., 1983. The Colour of Magic. 1st ed. Great Britain: Colin Smythe.

Terry Pratchett’s The Colour of Magic. (2008). [film] Directed by V. Jean. United Kingdom: Sky 1.

McLaren, J. (2014). The Colour of Magic. [Book Cover]. The Colour of Magic, The Discworld Collector’s Library

Kirby, J. (1986). The Light Fantastic. [Book Cover] The Light Fantastic.

Kidby, P. (2002). Discworld Massif. [Acrylic on Canvas] The Last Hero.

Kidby, P. (2012). Colour of Magic (Rincewind and Twoflower on Dragon) 2010 [Acrylic on illustration board] The Pratchett Portfolio.

 

Leave a comment