The Biennial of Illustrations Bratislava

The international competitive exhibition of original illustrations for children’s books, the Biennial of Illustrations Bratislava, is the most important event organised by BIBIANA, the international house of art for children. The Biennial is held under the auspices of UNESCO and the International Board on Books for Young People (IBBY). It is supported by the Ministry of Culture of the Slovak Republic and BIBIANA is the main organiser. This year is special, it is its 30th year, so that is 60 years of BIB tradition.

Paloma Valdivia studied graphic design at Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile and completed her postgraduate studies in creative illustration at EINA School of Art and Design Barcelona, Spain. Her greatest passion is children’s picture books. The author’s works have been translated into twelve languages. As a lecturer, she is in charge of “Illustration and Autobiographical Narrative” at the Catholic University of Chile. She said: “A book is a museum, a window. They are also the fireworks that illuminate us in our childhoods. They are moments of peace, contemplation, joy and provide views of other worlds that exist alongside ours that we do not know... yet.” A paper book is not just a story to be read and observed; it is everything that happens around it, the time an adult devotes to a child and the affection which brings peace just through reading it. She received the BIB Grand Prix 2023 for her illustrations for the bilingual book by Pablo Neruda: The Book of Questions. It is a book for children and the whole family. It is a book of poetry enriched by the art of the illustrator. As if the illustrator created her own visual poems in the book.

Viera Anoškinová