Paul Kidby is a British illustrator best known for his long association with Terry Pratchett's Discworld series, for which he became the definitive visual interpreter following the death of the original cover artist Josh Kirby in 2001. Where Kirby's work was busy, carnivalesque, and deliberately chaotic, Kidby brought a warmer and more character-focused approach, his portraits of Discworld's inhabitants combining affection with precision. His collaboration with Pratchett extended beyond cover illustration to include several standalone art books - The Art of Discworld and The Compleat Ankh-Morpork among them - as well as the illustrated editions of individual novels. His rendering of Death, Granny Weatherwax, Sam Vimes, and the wider cast has become the canonical visual reference for most readers. Kidby also contributed illustrations to The Last Hero, a Discworld graphic novel written by Pratchett, which remains one of the more complete expressions of their collaboration.