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Edge Chronicles #12 – Waterstones Launch

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The Edge Chronicles 12: Doombringer: Second Book of Cade

The Edge Chronicles 12: Doombringer: Second Book of Cade

This was the second of two significant book launches I attended last week.

Having been an enthusiast for the Edge Chronicles since the series began with Beyond The Deepwoods in 1998, it was only fitting that ACHUKA should be in attendance for the launch of  Doombringer – the latest title and 12th book in the sequence.

The event was held at Waterstones in Brighton, where both the author, Paul Stewart, and illustrator, Chris Riddell, have their homes.

It included live drawing by Riddell, accompanied by music composed by his son, and a question and answer session during which the symbiotic relationship between author and illustrator was entertainingly revealed.

Chris Riddell - live drawing

Chris Riddell – live drawing

Riddell has never been ‘just’ the illustrator of these works. His drawings and sketchbooks have helped to create the world of The Edge.

At the primary school where I used to work, The Edge chronicles were actually more widely read than Harry Potter – partly because the illustrations made them more accessible, and no doubt helped by the fact that Stewart and Riddell had visited the school early in the series, and the library wall displayed a giant Riddell drawing in memory of the occasion.

Stewart’s writing is beautifully fluent and free of the fantasy excesses that are so easy to mock and mimic.

This is a classic series that will stand the test of time and one would hope that Riddell’s laureateship, and the greater attention that role will bring to any work he is associated with, will help attract many more new readers to this series as it nears its conclusion. (Stewart and Riddell are currently working on the thirteenth title, which they say will be the last.)

Chris Riddell - live drawing

Chris Riddell – live drawing

Andersen Press Snap Up V&A Award Winner

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Andersen Press have announced the acquisition of a new picture book from Dan Ungureanu, just awarded the Student Runner-Up prize at the V&A Illustration Awards.

Nara and the Island, the book based on his award-winning artwork, will be published in Spring 2016.

All of the winning art works are on display at the V&A Museum until 2nd August 2015.
Dan is a recent graduate of Cambridge School of Art’s MA in Children’s Book Illustration, and has already been Highly Commended in the prestigious Macmillan Prize for Children’s Picture Book Illustration 2014.

Libby Hamilton, Editorial Director for Picture Books at Andersen Press, who acquired world rights to Dan Ungureanu’s author-illustrator debut says: “I fell in love with the same piece that has won Dan his V&A award, and when I discovered his lyrical storytelling, I was hooked. We are very excited to be fostering such an exceptional new talent in the world of picture books.”

via Book Trade Announcements – Andersen Press To Publish Picture Book By V&A Award Winner.

Kelpies Design & Illustration Prize – This Year’s Winner Is…

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The winner of the Kelpies Design & Illustration Prize 2015 is Lewis Copland.

This year, entrants were tasked with designing the cover of The Hill of the Red Fox by award-winning Scottish children’s author Allan Campbell McLean. This action-packed spy adventure – set in the rugged landscape of the Isle of Skye during the Cold War – has great scope for imaginative interpretation, and we were looking for a design that would grab the attention of boys and girls aged 9 to 12. Lewis thoroughly considered the full expanse of the cover in his design. The judges felt that the limited colour palette, dynamic composition and bold typography came together to create a striking and attractive design.

The Winning Design by Lewis Copland

All of the shortlisted entries will be on display in a special exhibition from Saturday 11th to Friday 17th April at The Creative Exchange, 29 Constitution Street, Edinburgh, EH6 7BS

via Kelpies Design & Illustration Prize – This Year’s Prize – Floris Books.

Inside The Mind Of The World’s Naughtiest Children’s Book Illustrator

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Recommended – a full-length interview with Tomi Ungerer:

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Over the past twenty years, Ungerer has finally received the recognition he’s so long deserved. In 1998, he was awarded the Hans Christian Andersen Award, the highest honor of the children’s literature realm. In 2013, a documentary titled “Far Out Isn’t Far Enough” was released, presenting a complex and compassionate view of Ungerer’s turbulent life and jubilant spirit. In 2015, an exhibition of his work, called “Tomi Ungerer: All in One” went on view at New York’s Drawing Center, hanging his erotic depictions alongside his children’s images for the first time.

In honor of Ungerer’s doc going live on SundanceNow Doc Club as part of their “Masters of Their Craft” programming, we reached out to the 83-year-old legend to learn more about his rousing life and intrepid imagination. Ungerer speckled the conversation with anecdotes and jokes, combining the generous wisdom of an elder with the giddiness of a child.

via Inside The Mind Of The World’s Naughtiest Children’s Book Illustrator.

Anthony Browne: how I re-imagined Alice in Wonderland

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What’s it like to illustrate a book already known for its iconic illustrations? Alice in Wonderland, originally drawn by Sir John Tenniel, was first published 150 years ago; here Anthony Browne describes his new surreal take on Alice. Look out for the primates!

Recommend you click the link to see 10 full colour illustrations from the book:

via Anthony Browne: how I re-imagined Alice in Wonderland | Children's books | The Guardian.

Charles Kim on Judging the Bologna Illustrators Exhibition

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Each year, the Bologna Children’s Book Fair hosts a highly competitive Illustrators Exhibition. More than 3,000 professional and amateur illustrators from sixty-two countries send in their art for consideration. A five-person jury consisitng of illustrators, academics, publishers, and editors, selects seventy-five to eighty artists to include in the exhibition.

I had never seen 15,000 original works on paper at once, and panicked slightly. I wasn’t the only juror to do so. But the exhibition managers, well versed in the art of dividing and conquering, had sorted the works into very helpful categories, such as the country of the submitting artist, or whether the artist was previously published or unpublished. Submissions made by art schools and publishers on behalf of their artists occupied separate areas on one side of the room.

Being one of the less than 2.5% of entrants chosen for the exhibition is not only an honor, it can change the illustrator’s life forever. Over the course of four days, 45,000 thousand people—publishers and editors, agents, authors, illustrators, students, and the public, young and old—roam the exhibition galleries, which sit in the middle of the enormous yet intimate fair. Hundreds of illustrators, some of them coming out of complete obscurity, leave the exhibition with book contracts.

via Charles Kim on Judging the Bologna Illustrators Exhibition.

Fritz Wegner obituary | The Guardian

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The illustrator Fritz Wegner, who has died aged 90, was a prolific creator of funny, detailed and memorable drawings, and a much-loved teacher. Born in Vienna to secular Jewish parents Michael and Eti, his secure childhood was abruptly ended by the Anschluss of 1938. After drawing a cartoon of Hitler and enraging his pro-Nazi teacher, he understood the danger he was in and his parents organised his departure, alone, by train to London.

His parents and sister were able to join him later, but initially Fritz was taken in by George Mansell, one of his teachers at St Martin’s School of Art (now Central Saint Martins), and his wife. As Wegner recalled in an interview: “It was an extremely generous thing to do and indeed I lived with them for several years, learning everything I later knew about lettering, penmanship, gilding and the Roman alphabet. That was the start of an early passion, after which I moved on to doing illustrations.

via Fritz Wegner obituary | Art and design | The Guardian.

Korky Paul: how to illustrate books – in pictures

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Highly recommended: Winnie The Witch illustrator Korky Paul takes us through, step-by-visual-step, his creative process.

Saunderson’s Waterford 190gm is my paper of choice. I guess I being a bit strict here to say you have to use it, you don’t really. But I love it and so thought you ought to know that!

http://www.theguardian.com/childrens-books-site/gallery/2015/mar/24/korky-paul-how-to-illustrate-books

Kelpies Design & Illustration Prize Shortlist

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The winner, chosen by a Floris judging panel, will see their front cover on the new edition of The Hill of the Red Fox, which will be published by Floris as part of their Kelpies range of Scottish children’s novels in autumn 2015. The winner will also receive a cheque for £250.

The award will be presented at a private reception at The Creative Exchange, Leith, on 10th April, where the twelve shortlisted entries will be on display until the 17th April.

The shortlisted artists in full [scroll down to see their work]:

Freya Allan, Glasgow
Lewis Copland, Gray’s School of Art
David Lymburn, Edinburgh College
Brad Newman, Aberdeen
Keith Anderson, Edinburgh
Laura Darling, Edinburgh
Kieren McDonald, Robert Gordon University
Simon Ray, Edinburgh
Rebecca Catterson, Gray’s School of Art
Darren Gate, Glasgow
Jon Nagl, Fife
Anna Elez Rodrigo, Edinburgh College

    • Anna Elez Rodrigo - Student at Edinburgh College
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      Anna Elez Rodrigo – Student at Edinburgh College
    • David Lymburn - Student at Edinburgh College
      B
      David Lymburn – Student at Edinburgh College
    • Rebecca Catterson - Student at Gray's School of Art
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      Rebecca Catterson – Student at Gray’s School of Art
    • Freya Allan - Amateur Designer from Glasgow
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      Freya Allan – Amateur Designer from Glasgow
    • Jon Nagl - Amateur Designer from Fife
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      Jon Nagl – Amateur Designer from Fife
    • Darren Gate - Professional Designer from Glasgow
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      Darren Gate – Professional Designer from Glasgow
    • Laura Darling - Artist in Residence at Edinburgh College of Art
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      Laura Darling – Artist in Residence at Edinburgh College of Art
    • Kieren McDonald - Student at Robert Gordon University
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      Kieren McDonald – Student at Robert Gordon University
    • Simon Ray - Artist from Edinburgh
      I
      Simon Ray – Artist from Edinburgh
    • Brad Newman - Professional Designer from Aberdeen
      J
      Brad Newman – Professional Designer from Aberdeen
    • Lewis Copland - Student at Gray's School of Art
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      Lewis Copland – Student at Gray’s School of Art
    • Keith Anderson - Professional Designer from Edinburgh
      L
      Keith Anderson – Professional Designer from Edinburgh

http://www.florisbooks.co.uk/kelpiesdesignprize/