It's the second year I run an online parallel "Illustrator Wall" for children's book illustrators in Thailand, who don't have the opportunity to come to #BCBF2023 (and also #BCBF2022).
I always knew we have many great talents, and I would love to see them shine bright on the global stage!
Please find and support them on Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook at #ThaikidsIllustrator #ThaiBCBF2023 and from last year: #ThaiBCBF2022 .
This project started from me realising how rare and valuable the opportunity for a Thai person to attend any international book fair is.
Many writers, artists, and publishers in Thailand have very little support to get out and get noticed by the world. I'm very lucky to first get a scholarship to study and then receive so much support from friends and family to stay abroad for almost 4 years and go to so many book fairs that were once just a dream for me.
It's only fair to give back this opportunity.
Last year I made postcard templates and called for artwork from Thai artists online. To my surprise, my post was retweeted over 20K in only a few days and illustrators kept joining in. That showed just how enthusiastic they were to get their creativity seen. I used some illustrations to create postcards and printed them out to stick on the Illustrator Wall at Bologna.
This year I asked the artists to design the postcards themselves with updated templates, and as always they came back with so many beautiful artworks.
Facebook Album on my page: see more
There is, as always, no direct flight from Aarhus to Bologna so I have to land in Pisa and make my way to Florence to stay a night before going to the fair (not complaining).
Like last time that I had to land in Milan, I bring the postcards with me and take pictures of them with a few famous landmarks in Italy.
Look how gorgeous they are!
With the help of my friend from TOPAsociety (Thai Overseas Publishing Alumni), we are collecting profiles of Thai children's book illustrators for a permanent landing website. For now, please visit http://topasociety.link/thai-writers-illustrators/ to see the artists' profiles and contacts.
Thank you, everyone!
Love,
Tarn