Bologna Illustrators Exhibition 2017

Here is a selection of photos from the impressive Illustrators exhibition this year, which was displayed on tables with desk lamps to allow the viewers to see the work from the jury's point of view. 75 illustrators were selected, representing 26 countries, including my home country Lithuania. Quite a few of these artworks were non-fiction, such as the vibrant screen prints of giant insects by Joohee Yoon, gorgeous monkeys painted by Claire Agnelli and the bold dress pattern designs by Mayumi Oono.

There was a great range of techniques used to create the selected artworks, including collage, coloured pencils, ink, screen printing, engraving, gouache, acrylic, oil and even embroidered textile. A good majority of the exhibited pieces, as far as I noticed, were either digital or used digital media to imitate traditional printmaking techniques. However, the winning artist this year, Manuel Marsol from Spain, did not follow this trend and used a mixture of various paints and wax pastels on wood to create his surreal and mysterious illustrations. If you would like to learn more about Manuel's creative process and inspirations, please enjoy this interesting article featuring his amazing debut book on Picture Book Makers.

These pictures were taken on the last day of the fair when it was least busy

The illustrations were framed by white cardboard

Manuel Marsol - the winner of International Award for Illustration 2017 (Spain, fiction)

Ausra Kiudulaite (Lithuania, fiction)

Joohee Yoon (USA, non-fiction)

Kevin Ward (Ireland/Canada, fiction)

Yu Teng (Taiwan, fiction)

Daniela Tieni (Italy, fiction)

Claire Agnelli (France, non-fiction)

Adolfo Serra (Spain, non-fiction)

Cecilia Ferri (Italy, fiction)

Zosia Dzierzawska (Poland, non-fiction)

Olga Ezova-Denisova (Russia, fiction)

Marie Mignot (France, fiction)

Mayumi Oono (Japan, non-fiction)

Mariann Maray (Hungary, fiction)

I hope you have a chance to visit Bologna Children's Book Fair at least once. I always come back from this four-day fair feeling inspired to create new work and improve my artistic skills. If you would like to see more examples of the artwork from this beautiful exhibition, please check out the official Bologna Children's Book Fair Photogallery.