Bologna, Italy. Seated at a table at Osteria dell’Orsa, a local restaurant, I can’t help but notice the long line of customers waiting outside. Inside the dining room, it is almost as if the menu of the restaurant did not exist, as the long tables are filled with people all eating the same dish of meatsauce tagliatelle, a dish almost universally known outside of Italy as “spaghetti bolognese”. The recipe of the meat sauce called “Bolognese” was actually first described in a recipe book published in 1891 by Pellegrino Autusi. The sauce was later registered by the Italian Academy of Cuisine in 1892 with the Bologna chamber of Commerce. The original form of ragù (meat based sauce in Italian) now exists with many traditional variation inside and outside of Italy.
One wonders what would have happened if the recipe had not been published in Pellegrino Autusi’s originally self-published cooking manual. One great recipe might have been simply forgotten: that is the true power of books.
For more than 50 years, the city of Bologna has also been the host of a unique book-related event: the Bologna Children’s Book Fair is the leading trade fair for children’s books in the world. The Fair first opened at Palazzo Re Enzo, on April 4, 1964 and is now held a the Bologna Fiere Exhibition Centre where it attracts over 25,000 visitors per year. Two years after the first event, an Illustrator Award was created an event followed a year later by the inauguration of the Illustrators Exhibition. This fast growing event quickly caught the interest of many famous illustrators. In no time, it became internationally famous and is now one of the few places to meet and debate with authors, illustrators, and experts. The Fair keeps expanding and now devotes an entire space to digital publication.
さて、５０年以上ボローニャで続いている本関連のイベント、ボローニャ国際絵本市という絵本のイベントは、世界中でも一つの大きな本の商業的イベントとして知られています。最初に開かれたのは１９６４年４月４日にボローニャ近くのPalazzo Re Enzoという街でした。今では国際展示場Bologna Fiereで行われ、毎年２万５千人ほど訪れるようになるほど人気を集めたそうです。その最初から２年後の１９６６年、イラストレーター賞が設立されイラストレーターの展示が開設されました。このイベントの初期の早い成長はたくさんの有名なイラストレーターの興味をそそることになりました。それから間もなく、この絵本市は国際的に知られるようになり、著者、出版社、イラストレーター、プロの方々との商談や会議などが開かれるようになったそうです。最近ではデジタル分野にも場を広げているそうです。
The Fair opens for four days: the 2018 edition ran from March 26 to 29. Four different areas are open, centered around the Digital Cafe, Authur’s Cafe, the Publisher’s Cafe, and the Illustrator’s Cafe. Walking around the different areas, one can catch many different languages as publishers, writers, and illustrators from all over the world attend the Fair to expand their network and open up opportunities to develop their career.
The Illustrator area has been a part of the Fair since 1967. In addition to the area occupied by exhibitors, several display walls are made available to everybody: visitors can use them to display postcards, illustrations, posters and business cards. It did not take long to see them filled with colorful artwork from the top all the way down to the floor.
Similar events are now also held in the United States and in Japan. One partner of the Bologna Fair is Children’s Book Fair of America, that will organize the New York Rights Fair from May 30 to June 1, 2018. China will also host a fair in November 2018, organized by the China Shangai International Children’s Book Fair.
Every year, a competition open to any illustrator is held: each application must consist of a set of five illustrations for a single story. They can be new original pieces or may already have been published in the two years prior to the application deadline.
Other awards also take place during the Fair: the Bologna Raggazi Award, the International Award for Illustration of the Bologna Children’s Book Fair Foundation SM (for illustrators younger than 35), the Ars in Fabula Grant Award (for illustrators younger than 30). Winners are announced at the Fair. It is not just about illustrators and authors: publishers also compete for the Bologna Prize for the Best Children’s Publishers of the Year. And as the media keep evolving, a Bologna Ragazzi Digital Award has more recently been created for digital artists.
フェアでは他にも、the BolognaRagazzi awardsという世界的に有名なイラストレーターのコンペで賞もあり、この賞を取ったイラストの原画も展示されます。イラスト部門での賞には他にもInternationalAward for Illustration Bologna Children’s Book Fair – Fundación SM（３５歳以下のイラストレーター対象）やARS IN FABULA Grant Award（３０歳以下のイラストレーターが対象）などがあり、見本市のプログラムの中で受賞者が発表されるようです。他には出版者のためのBOP – Bologna Prize for the Best Children’s Publishers of the Yearや、最近活発になっているデジタル部門ではBolognaRagazzi Digital Awardなどがあります。
Similar events are now also held in the United States and in Japan. One partner of the Bologna Fair is Children’s Book Fair of America, that will organize the New York Rights Fair from May 30 to June 1, 2018. China will also host a fair in November 2018, organized by the China Shangai International Children’s Book Fair.
