- Four Korean picture books honored in the fiction and other categories of the 2023 BolognaRagazzi Award

 - March 6 to 9; 26 Korean publishers to join the fair to promote books and hold export meetings

 - Authors/artists KWON Jung-min, NOH In-kyung, LEE Gi-hun, LEE Suzy, LEE Ji-eun, and CHOI Duk-kyu and readers to join the event

The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism (Minister PARK Bo Gyoon, MCST), the Publication Industry Promotion Agency of Korea (President KIM Jun-hee, KPIPA) and the Korea Publishers Association (President YOON Cheol-Ho, KPA) to showcase the prowess of Korean children’s book authors on a global stage and boost the export and globalization of Korean picture books during the Bologna Children’s Book Fair in Italy from March 6 (Mon) to 9 (Thurs).

Korean children’s books, and Korean picture books, in particular, have been reporting high export volumes over the years, and served as one of the main driving forces of K-content and Korea’s growth as a cultural powerhouse, with many authors winning prestigious honors such as the Hans Christian Andersen Award, Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award, and BolognaRagazzi Award. Picture books, source content for various areas, include animation, webtoons (web-comic), and merchandise, and continue to lead the Korean book industry with its infinite potential for intellectual property (IP) trading.

Celebrating its 60th anniversary this year, the Bologna Children’s Book Fair is one of the world’s largest children’s book events. Each year, more than 1,000 publishing companies and around 5,000 publishers, authors, and illustrators join the event to exchange information and trade IP rights.

 LEE Ji Yeon’s Moving Away and Three Other Korean Picture Books Won the 2023 BolognaRagazzi Awards

The Bologna Children’s Book Fair is also famous for the BolognaRagazzi Award.[1] This year, LEE Ji Yeon’s Moving Away (NCSoft) in the Fiction category, Mia’s The bench, About blue (Studio Woom) in the Opera Prima category, and KIM Kyu-Ah’s The Shadow Theater (Bearbooks) and House of Dracula by 5unday (author) and YUN Heedae (illustration) in the Comics (middle grade, age 9 to 12) category was honored with special mentions during the 2023 event. The award again recognized Korean authors and artists after LEE Suzy and CHOI Deok-gyu won special mentions in the fiction and non-fiction categories last year, respectively. Often referred to as the “Nobel Prize for children’s literature,” the BolognaRagazzi Award is globally recognized. K-picture book authors and artists have proven their prowess in front of global audiences by winning honors at the Ragazzi awards almost every year since 2004. This year’s award ceremony took place for two days on March 6 (Mon) and 7 (Tue).

 Twenty six Korean publishers joined the fair, including Munhak Dongnae, Biryongso, Gloyeon, and Kinderland

 Six Korean authors/artists—KWON Jung-min, NOH In-kyung, LEE Gi-hun, LEE Suzy, LEE Gee-eun, and CHOI Duk-kyu— meet with readers

The Korean section (a group section for publishers, 224㎡) was joined by 26 Korean publishers, including Munhak Dongnae, Biryongso, Gloyeon, and Kinderland. The participants had meetings for their own publications, while promoting 70 books from 22 publishers that could not take part in the event. The unique Killer Content Booth (96 ㎡) featured 19 picture books by 4 authors/artists (KWON Jung-min, LEE Gi-hun, LEE Ji-eun, and CHOI Duk-kyu) and 24 other books for a special exhibition. The books were displayed in the special exhibition selected by the Korean Board on Books for Young People (KBBY) among recently published Korean picture books, taking into account the diversity of genres and themes in an attempt to push back boundaries.

The Killer Content Booth hosted a wide selection of eight side events, including a live painting show to reimagine LEE Gi-hun’s picture books 09:47, a meeting with LEE Ji-eun, the author of Iparapanyamu, a visual association play performance by CHOI Duk-kyu, KWON Jung-min’s book talk event “Black Comedy in Picture Books,” and a book reading with NOH In-kyung, as well as meetings with overseas picture book professionals. KWON Jung-min and LEE Gi-hun joined a seminar on picture books during a special stage jointly prepared by the book fair organizers. LEE Suzy, who was invited to this year’s fair and selected to create the cover of the Illustrators Annual for the 2023 Illustrators Exhibition, discussed her works with LEE Gi-hun and CHOI Duk-kyu at the seminar “Korean Picture Books, Speaking with Pictures.”

An MCST policy official said, “K-picture books are Korea’s leading cultural content widely recognized worldwide. It is expected that global readers will expand their imaginations by reading Korean picture books. We at the MCST will continue to build the competitive edge of K-picture books by attending book fairs, spreading and promoting Korean picture books in other countries, awarding Korean picture book authors and artists, and introducing the literature to global readers, so that Korean picture books can meet readers across the world.”