Maria Haiduk: Winner of the International Illustrators' Competition
Ukrainian artist and illustrator Maria Haiduk has emerged victorious at the 59th Bologna Illustrators' Exhibition, part of the Bologna Children's Book Fair.
This was announced on the fair's official website.
A student at the Lviv National Academy, originally from Kherson, she was awarded for her project "Killing Gods," which investigates the issue of ecocide and humanity's relationship with nature.
The jury praised Maria Haiduk for her works, which balance boldness and sensitivity.
She has become the youngest laureate of the exhibition.
"I truly hope this will draw more attention to the genocide humans perpetrate against nature and animals. I am grateful to my mentors Ivan Sergeev (Serbia) and Nina Ignatova (Spain) for their guidance, and to Vitaly Zemlyansky (Switzerland), a doctor of bioecological sciences at Zurich University, for his assistance in writing the scientific text", the young artist stated.
This year, winners were selected from 4,374 illustrators from 89 countries, with a total of 21,870 illustrations submitted. The final round featured 324 artists, including five illustrators from Ukraine: Maria Haiduk, Oksana Drachkivska, Sofia Kupriyanova, Anna Ivanenko, and Olesya Sekeres.
About the Bologna Illustrators' Exhibition
In 2024, the awards went to Ukrainian artists Polina Doroshenko and Oksana Domashich.
The Bologna Illustrators' Exhibition, established in 1967, has been held annually since then. The competition showcases the latest trends in illustration and promotes new names in the art world.
All artists' works are published in the Illustrators Annual – a comprehensive catalog for publishers and illustrators worldwide, filled with comments from jury members. The publication is released in Italian and English and is distributed by international specialty bookstores. It is also published in Japanese by JBBY, in Korea by CCOC, and in China by Dandelion Picture Book House. After the fair, the exhibition travels internationally to museums, art galleries, and significant libraries in Japan, Korea, China, and other countries.
The exhibition is organized as part of the Bologna Children's Book Fair in Italy.
