Regarding Yuki Midorikawa’s self-portrait
Some time ago, I received a question from an overseas reader about the profile image of Yuki Midorikawa shown on Comic Natalie. I am very sorry that it took me such a long time to notice and respond to the message.
The question was whether the image of Yuki Midorikawa on Comic Natalie is a self-portrait drawn by Midorikawa-san herself.
This is the image in question: https://natalie.mu/comic/artist/2453
Regarding the profile image used on the Comic Natalie page, I believe it is a self-portrait drawn by Yuki Midorikawa herself, rather than an illustration created by the website staff.
The earliest appearance I have been able to confirm is in the February 1998 issue of LaLa, in the results section for the 74th LMS manga competition. The drawing appeared beside Midorikawa-san’s comment when her submitted work “Hana Dorobō” (花泥棒) received the Best Rookie Award and the First Submission Award.
At that time, the LMS results pages normally featured both a short comment and a self-portrait provided by each contributor. For this reason, I think it is reasonable to conclude that the drawing was made by Midorikawa-san herself when she submitted her work.
The same image was subsequently used many times in LaLa and LaLa DX as Midorikawa-san’s profile image. At the very least, it was still being used as recently as the April 2024 issue of LaLa.
I cannot state with absolute certainty that the February 1998 issue was the image’s first-ever appearance, but it is the earliest use that I have been able to confirm.
I will also post a Japanese-language version of this answer publicly, so that the source information will remain accessible to other readers.
Here: https://ageo-akaihana.livejournal.com/9076.html
Thank you again for visiting my site, and I am very sorry that it took me so long to answer your question.
Ageo
