The Art and Illustration of Evelyne Laube Nina

The Art and Illustration of Evelyne Laube & Nina Wehrle and Eunyoung Cho Suzanne Peterson ~ 17: 610: 590: 90 ~International Children's Publishing and Literature ~ Spring 2014

Biennial of Illustrations Bratislava The Biennial of Illustrations Bratislava (BIB) is a juried exhibition of illustrations for children’s books, sponsored by UNESCO in cooperation with the IBBY. It has been held in odd-numbered years since 1967 in Bratislava, Slovakia. There are eleven awards and a grand prize for unique and outstanding illustration: 1 Grand Prix 5 Golden Apples 5 BIB Plaques 1 Honorary Mention Certificate (awarded to a publisher) Over 6000 illustrators from more than 100 countries worldwide have presented at BIB, with more than 50, 000 original illustrations (http: //www. bibiana. sk). Receiving the Grand Prix entitles an artist to mount his or her own individual exhibition at the next BIB. In this presentation, I will focus on the art and illustration of two recent BIB winners: the team of Evelyne Laube and Nina Wehrle from Switzerland, and Eunyoung Cho, of Korea. These illustrators have been the recipients of the BIB’s highest honor, The Grand Prix.

It’s Raining Elephants BIB Grand Prix Winner, 2013 Illustrators Evelyne Laub (b. 1982 in Lengnau, Switzerland) and Nina Wehrle (b. 1984 in Willisau, Switzerland) formed a working partnership in 2008 (http: //www. itsrainingelephants. ch/). As an illustration team, they are known as “It’s Raining Elephants. ” Their 2011 collaboration, Die Grosse Flut (The Great Flood) won the highest honor at the 2013 Biennial of Illustrations Bratislava, The Grand Prix. It was the first time in BIB’s 46 year history that a Swiss contribution took the top prize (http: //www. wetterreporter. ch/).

Die Grosse Flut/The Great Flood is a retelling of the story of Noah’s Ark. The artists “were fascinated with the archaic force and absurdity of the bible text. ” (http: //www. itsrainingelephants. ch/) The book is illustrated on unfolding pages of text from Genesis 5. 1 to 9. 1, in which the flood is described.

In addition to winning the Grand Prix at Biennial Illustrations Bratislava, The Great Flood received a Special Mention of the Jury at Illustrarte, Portugal in 2011, won in both Publication and Illustration categories at the CJ picture book festival, Korea in 2011, and the International Prize for Illustration at the Bologna Children's Book Fair in Italy in 2012.

You may have seen some of Laube and Wehrle’s work in person, at the 2014 Bologna Children’s Book Fair where they exhibited their work at the Illustrator’s Café. They also created this year’s cover for Illustrators’ Annual, the official publication of the fair.

Quetzal Léon Calixto, Art Director at Ediciones SM Mexico, was one of the three judges who chose The Great Flood for the Fundación SM International Award for Illustration at the 2012 Bologna Children’s Book Fair. In Varoom! magazine, 2012, Quetzal stated “the images of Nina and Evelyn have a particular and uncomfortable atmosphere to assist their story, and the story talks about a dark and disturbing future. ” He praised the use of graphic pencils to evoke dark, uncomfortable imagery.

Asked whether Laube and Wehrle’s illustrations will appeal to children, Quetzal replies “It’s a difficult question. I think we have a strange idea about what a child likes, a market idea, an educational idea, etc. But in my experience…what a child likes is always open to many kinds of images. ” (Varoom! 2012)

Eunyoung Cho BIB Grand Prix Winner 2011 Eunyoung Cho was the Grand Prix winner at the BIB 2011 for Run Toto! Cho worked drawing illustrations commissioned by publishers before becoming frustrated with the lack of artistic freedom. She decided to try her hand at creating picture books. Run Toto! was inspired by her love of horses and childhood memories of going to horse races. (Kim, 2012) She utilizes color and line to reflect how children see galloping horses.

Cho exhibited her work at the Bologna Children’s Book Fair in 2012. Like Laube and Wehrle, Cho also had a turn at designing the cover for that year’s Illustrator’s Annual:

Run Toto!

In addition to portraying the race track as a place of excitement and fantasy for a child, Run Toto! shows disappointed adults seeing their hopes dashed as the horses they have bet on do not win, creating a stark contrast between the different viewpoints.

Some critics questioned whether illustrations of adults smoking, gambling, and fighting were appropriate for inclusion in a children’s book. However, Cho believes that the essence of the story lies in the love between a child and a horse. (Kim, 2012)

Dark imagery, adult behaviors…it isn’t difficult to image these books causing U. S. parents and teachers concern over whether children should be exposed to them. However, critics have embraced these books. List Magazine called Run Toto! “a masterpiece that appeals to readers of all ages” (Kim, 2012) In 2012, Italian publisher Topipittori said of The Great Flood “it is one of the best presentations we have ever received in the publishing house. Few words…reveal[s] that talent, expertise, understanding of narrative and inventive. ” (http: //pozarozkladem. blogspot. com/2012/07/run-toto-z-seulu-cd. html, via Google Translate)

But what will children think? Are these books really that different from kids’ books published in the U. S. ? Darker? More disturbing? Maybe…

Maybe not… Perhaps the child reader is the best judge of what makes an appropriate children’s book. Some children are capable of handling disturbing themes and imagery at earlier ages than others. As Quetzal Léon Calixto said in regards to The Great Flood, “what a child likes is always open to many kinds of images. ” Furthermore, “children have a great capacity to comprehend the “other. ” (Varoom!, 2012)

Sharing the Stories Since they are not yet published in the United States, it may be difficult to track these titles down. However, there a few sources from which they can be purchased and shipped overseas. The Great Flood may be purchased directly from the publisher, SJW, at http: //www. sjw. ch/index. htm Han Books in Los Angeles, CA, a seller of Korean books, CDs, and DVDs (http: //www. hanbooks. com/) states that they can obtain virtually any book available in Korea. This is a likely source for the award winning Run Toto!

Once we’ve obtained the books, we might want to pair them with more familiar titles as a way of introducing them to readers who might otherwise pass them by. Displays of similar themed stories are one possibility… Read about Noah’s Ark!

Horse Racing Stories For Kids!

We might also group them with wordless picture books, to emphasize the unique artwork the illustrators have created. e M l l Te y! r o t S the Imagination…

Enjoy! Whether our patrons choose to read these books or feel that they are too far out of their comfort zone for children’s literature, the works of Cho and Laube & Wehrle are unique, beautifully crafted masterpieces that deserve a place in our libraries for easy access by an audience who will enjoy them – whether they can read the text in the original language, or simply admire the artwork. It doesn’t much matter in what way they are used, as long as they can be enjoyed.

References BIBIANA site: Archive BIB 2011. (n. d. ). Retrieved from http: //www. bibiana. sk/index. php? id=274&L=2 Biennial of Illustration Bratislava - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. (n. d. ). Retrieved March 2014, from http: //en. wikipedia. org/wiki/Biennial_of_Illustration_Bratislava Bologna. Fiere - Bologna Exhibitions and Fairs. (n. d. ). Retrieved from http: //www. bolognafiere. it/en/home CHILDREN'S ILLUSTRATION: Cho Eun Young. (n. d. ). Retrieved from http: //picturebookillustration. blogspot. com/2013/09/cho-eun-young. html Hwang, D. (2012, March). Korean children’s books entice European readers. Retrieved from http: //www. korea. net/News. Focus/Culture/view? article. Id=99543 Kim, J. (2012). LIST Magazine. Retrieved from http: //www. list. or. kr/articles/article_view. htm? Div 1=8&Idx=847 Laube, E. , & Wehrle, N. (n. d. ). it's raining elephants. Retrieved from http: //www. itsrainingelephants. ch/ Poza Rozkładem: "Run Toto!" (Z Seulu c. d. ). (2012, July). Retrieved from http: //pozarozkladem. blogspot. com/2012/07/run-toto-z-seulu-cd. html Varoom 18: Children’s Books. (2012). Varoom!. Retrieved from http: //www. varoom-mag. com/? p=1357 «Die grosse Flut» in Bratislava mit dem GRAND PRIX BIB 2013 ausgezeichnet | Wetterreporter. (2013, September). Retrieved from http: //www. wetterreporter. ch/? p=2104