Saunders illustrations win at Bologna Illustrators Exhibition

Australian illustrator Lauren Saunders is among the winning illustrators at Bologna Children’s Book Fair (BCBF) Illustrators Exhibition.

A jury selected Saunders’s illustration set of 5 artworks as a winning entry, among winning illustration sets by 75 artists from 31 countries, selected from 317 finalist submissions.

In an interview with Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators (SCBWI) international illustrator coordinator Tita Berredo, Saunders said she created a first piece in her set (pictured) by experimenting with 3 lists, selecting “bird” from the character list, “sneaking” from the action list and “acrylic” from the material list.

“I just wanted to stretch myself and try different things,” said Saunders. “I liked what came out of it and […] wanted to develop that into something more, [so] I developed these other 4 [artworks] to go along with it.”

Now that BCBF has ended, the works will be exhibited as part of an international tour within cultural venues over the next 2 years.

The Illustrators Exhibition was established in 1967 as “a showcase for discovering new talent and has accompanied the evolution of the illustration world for decades,” according to BCBF.

Category: Local news