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Call for submissions for the 2022 Malta Book Festival exhibition “From illustration to book” - closed

The National Book Council, in collaboration with Arts Council Malta, is issuing a call for submissions for the 2022 Malta Book Festival exhibition “From illustration to book”. The Festival and the exhibition will be taking place between 23 and 27 November 2022.

This will be the first edition of an exhibition dedicated to book design and illustration as an integral part of the Malta Book Festival events and activities. 

Our objective is to showcase the work of Malta’s leading contemporary book illustrators and designers, together with a section paying homage to the country’s book illustration and design pioneers, and another to the winning submissions to the Malta Community of Illustrators 2022 Illustration Annual. 

 

This initiative forms part of a strategic collaboration between the NBC and ACM, with an idea in mind to promote innovation within the local publishing industry to include all aspects of its creative professions, thus:

  • nurturing cross-sectoral synergies, at local, national and international levels, with a common ground to be found in illustration and graphic design work related to books. 
  • support professional development and knowledge exchange
  • build networks on a national and international level, enabling further opportunities for local creatives locally and internationally; 
  • provide local (publishing) creatives with the necessary knowledge and awareness about job opportunities by having a deeper knowledge of the industry and the synergies between literature and art; 
  • promote training initiatives to get to explore the international publishing industry and apply new standards locally.

We would like to invite you to submit illustrations or designs to be considered for this exhibition. The following will be accepted: 

  • a final book cover with typography and illustration, or the illustration itself featuring in the book cover as separate from the cover layout; 
  • an illustration from the interior of the book as part of the book interior layout, or the illustration itself featuring in the book interior as separate from the layout;
  • A graphic design for a published book cover or interior.

The applicant can submit proposals as follows: 1) the work can be 'published' or 'self-published’; 2) the work can be a printed book or an e-book; 3) the work can be an illustration/graphic design work for a Maltese book (with a Maltese ISBN) by a Maltese or a foreign illustrator/designer; 4) the work can be an illustration/graphic design work by a Maltese illustrator for foreign a book (with a Maltese ISBN); 

The submissions will be reviewed by a selection committee lead by NBC and ACM, and is aiming at substantial and large selection of the proposals received.

 

Application and selection procedure:

  • Please submit a maximum of three (3) artworks in high-res format (pdf, jpg or eps) with a caption containing the following 
    • ILLUSTRATOR:
    • ARTWORK NAME:
    • MEDIUM:
    • CONTACT DETAILS (Instagram or other social media, website)
    • BOOK TITLE

 

  • Please submit the artwork (a wetransfer, dropbox or Googledrive link or similar would be preferable), your CV and a 20-30 word bio note to nikki.petroni.1@artscouncil.mt. 

 

  • If available, provide a sketch or artwork at work-in-progress stage or pitching stage, to be features in a special section about thought process, pitching-commissioning and publication process.

 

A maximum of two (2) illustrations and/or design per artist will be selected for inclusion in the exhibition. The chosen illustrations will be exhibited as large prints (size A0, high resolution printed / Matt Lamination, Installed on 3mm pvc boards, with hooks attached) and will be accompanied by copies of the corresponding publications. 

 

The printing costs will be borne by the National Book Council and Arts Council Malta.

 

Timeline:

Deadline for submissions: Wednesday 31 August 2022 at 12:00 (noon)

Notification of result: Friday 16 September 2022

For more info send an email on fundinfo@artscouncil.mt. 

Arts Council Malta
TG Complex Suite 1, Level 1
Triq Il-Birrerija, Zone 3
Central Business District, Birkirkara
CBD 3040
Tel: +356 2334 7201/02