TEHRAN – Works by 13 Iranian artists were selected to be showcased at the 56th edition of the Illustrators Exhibition in Bologna, Italy as the organizers announced the finalists on Friday.

The exhibition will be organized concurrently with the 59th edition of the Bologna Children’s Book Fair from March 21 to 24.

Mitra Abdollahi, Amir Alai, Mona Amoli, Mohammad Babakuhi, Reza Dalvand, Alireza Golduzian and Sana Habibi-Rad are among the Iranian illustrators.

Pedram Kazeruni, Narges Mohammadi, Fereshteh Najafi, Narjes Khatun (Sara)    Saberi Fumani, Nushin Sadeqian and Nushin Safakhu are other Iranian participants.

The 56th Illustrators Exhibition received submissions from 3,873 artists from 92 countries.

An international jury made up of Barroux from France, Nana Furiya from Japan, Agata Loth-Ignaciuk from Poland, Irene Savino from Venezuela and Valerio Vidali from Italy shortlisted 318 finalists.

The jurors have just gathered in Bologna to review this year’s entries for the Illustrators Exhibition, and select the winners.

The aims of the Illustrators Exhibition are to bring illustrators and publishers together and to promote illustrators and their work among publishers.

Iranian illustrators and publishers have always been among the frequent participants of the exhibition and the Bologna Children’s Book Fair.

The Bologna Children’s Book Fair 2021 honored Tuti Books, a major publication house based in Tehran, with the BOP - Bologna Prize for the Best Children’s Publishers of the Year in Asia.

This was the first time a publisher from Iran won the prestigious award, which was established in 2013 to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the BCBF.

After two years of virtual encounters, the organizers have announced that this year’s fair once again will be held in person.  

The BolognaBookPlus (BBPlus) will also be organized physically. The new initiative to reach a wider professional audience across the global publishing industry was organized for the first time in 2021.

Photo: Front cover of Mohammad-Hadi Mohammadi’s book “One Thousand Colored Birds and Red Deer” illustrated by Mohammad Babakuhi, one of the Iranian artists whose works selected for the Illustrators Exhibition in Bologna.

MMS/YAW