SOUMENART: BIENNIAL OF ILLUSTRATIONS BRATISLAVA, SLOVAKIA 2011

The India Section of the Biennial

The Middle panel shows illustrations done by Soumen Bhowmick of India

Suvidha Mistry, Soumen Bhowmick, Sanjay Sarkar and Ajit Narayanan were the selected Illustrators from India. After 15 years India got selected. Its one of the most prestigious Biennial for Illustrators. My picture book illustrations for BUNBUN AND THE MANGO TREE and TORU NANU AND HIPU written by Manorama Jafa of Khaas Kitaab got selected. PEACE STORY and BHABLOO BEAR'S ADVENTURE illustrated by Suvidha Mistry were displayed there.
The 23rd Biennial of Illustrations Bratislava /BIB/ will start on 2nd September 2011. The festive opening will took place on in the Historic Building of the Slovak National Theatre in Bratislava. The competition part of BIB will be presented again in Dom umenia (House of Culture), Nám. SNP 12 as it was the case in the past. Their will take part 44 countries, 356 illustrators with the 2318 illustrations from the 458 books. Except of the competition part of children books illustration originals we traditionally presented the exhibitions of BIB Grand Prix winners of the previous year and the winners of H. CH. Andersen Prize for the year 2010 at the Biennial. In the central Hall of Honour of the House of Culture a large collection of Spanish illustrator Josep Antoni Tássies Penella will be presented at BIB 2011. He was awarded Grand Prix BIB 2009 for his illustrations. We also will present the works of Jutta Bauer from Germany awarded with H. CH. Andersen Prize 2010 for her illustrations. Together with the originals and reproductions of the awarded artists also books and the text abut David Almond from United Kingdom awarded with H. CH. Andersen Prize 2010 for the literature will be presented.

Since 1967, every odd year in Bratislava has been connected with the international juried exhibition of original illustrations of children's books. The Biennial of Illustration Bratislava (BIB) is held under the auspices of UNESCO and IBBY (the International Board on Books for Young People) and with the support of the SR Ministry of Culture. BIBIANA, international house of art for children, is the principal organizer of the event. The BIB International Jury gives the following prestigious awards: Grand Prix BIB, Golden Apples BIB, Plaques BIB to illustrators and Honorary Mention to a Publishing House. In the past, some more prizes had been granted, namely Golden Plaque BIB, Bronze Plaque BIB and Honorary Mention BIB.
Moreover, an independent Children’s Jury made up of children, former winners of some Slovakia’s nationwide artistic competition, meets to make its own selection and awards an illustrator the BIB Children’s Jury Prize.