Artists of both banks of the Prut river participating in the exhibitions of the Biennale of Illustrations Bratislava (1967–2015)
Artists of both banks of the Prut river participating in the exhibitions of the Biennale of Illustrations Bratislava (1967–2015)

Summary/Abstract: The paper provides data on the almost fifty-year-long participation of artists from the Romanian cultural region in the BIB exhibitions, one of the world’s most prestigious. The issue has not been studied earlier because of the lack of scholarly interest in children’s book illustration. The paper examines artworks executed by professional artists from the left bank of the Prut or the Prut-Nistru area (the Moldavian Soviet Socialist Republic / the Republic of Moldova) and the right bank of the Prut (the Romanian Socialist Republic / the Republic of Romania). Both regions are considered since they have a common literary folk heritage. In the paper, the illustrations are examined both in terms of the evolution of national traditions in illustrating children’s literature, and in terms of the impact of European art. Since the very beginning, the participation of artists has been conditioned by the publication of illustrations. Thus, any illustration presented at the BIB could be examined as an individual artwork, and also as a piece of book design. The organizers of the contest have been guided by the provisions of the Declaration of the Rights of the Child (1959), the Universal Copyright Convention (1952) and also the statements of the International Board on Books for Young (founded 1953) concerning support in publishing and distributing books for children around the world.

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