Our bags are packed and in a few hours both Marjorie and I will be flying to Italy to attend the 2012 Bologna Children’s Book Fair! As we all know, the Bologna Children’s Book Fair is the most important international event dedicated to children’s publishing. 2012 marks the 49th edition of the fair and will take place March 19th – 22nd. Over 20,000 square meters of exhibition space have been booked, over 1,200 exhibitors from over 66 countries are confirmed, and a jam-packed programme of events has been released. A small sampling of the highlights:
The 2012 Guest of Honor at the Illustrators Exhibition will be Portugal. Portugal will present an exhibit entitled Como as cerejas (Like cherries), a selection of works by well established illustrators for children’s books as well as works by young artists presenting the finest in contemporary Portuguese illustration.
The Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award announcement will be broadcast live to Bologna from Sweden on March 20th. This is the 10th anniversary of ALMA and is especially exciting for us as PaperTigers is a nominating body for the award.
Bologna Children’s Book Fair – SM Foundation International Award for Illustration. This winner of this award, reserved to young illustrators (under 35) selected for the 2012 Illustrators Exhibition, will be announced on March 21.
Illustrators Exhibition. Once again, a wealth of works by illustrators (well-known professionals and emerging talents) will be on display. The 2012 international jury has selected 72 illustrators from 2,685 participants and 360 illustrations will be exhibited.
BolognaRagazzi Awards. This initative rewards the best books in terms of graphic and editorial design and this year, along wit