About half a century ago, the International Fair for Children’s and Young Adult Literature (today known as the Bologna Children’s Book Fair) organised the first “Illustrators Exhibition” in Bologna, a city home of the first university in the West and a benchmark for anyone involved or interested in the production of children’s books. Over the years, the Bologna Illustrators Exhibition has grown as an internationally acknowledged window for excellence and innovation in the field of illustration. Each edition of the exhibition is the result of a careful selection of the best submissions among thousands of candidates from all geographical and cultural origins. 

It takes a long journey to come from Bologna to Shanghai. Yet, here we are: 76 illustrators, 377 artworks, which include the complete 2017 selection and a special display of 50 pieces to help you understand the evolution of the discipline in the last half-a-century. Extremely diversed in themes and techniques, the exhibition opens a bridge between picture book illustration and contemporary art and will result visually stimulating for both adult and young visitors.

“From Bologna to the World: Masters and New Voices of Illustration (1967-2017)” is held from 1 May to 9 July 2018, at the Duo Yun Xuan Art Museum. QR-based audio guide is available in Chinese on-site. English guided tour can be booked in advance. Programmes of talks and workshops all throughout the exhibition period.