“Perhaps Trees Remember” by Taiwan artist Ballboss has been selected to feature in the Illustrators Exhibition at the 2025 Bologna Children’s Book Fair set to kick off March 31 in the Italian city, according to the Ministry of Culture.
Published in December 2024 by Tainan City-based National Museum of Taiwan Literature in both Mandarin and Taiwanese, the book documents a community cultural asset preservation campaign that collected local stories and historical materials to set up the Taiwan Literature Base, which is housed in a compound in Taipei City dating from the Japanese colonial era (1895-1945).
According to NMTL Director Chen Ying-fang, the illustrated book addresses issues spanning history, the environment, cultural assets and civic awareness, invoking universal values that resonate with readers. Its selection for the exhibition will serve as an excellent opportunity for global audiences to better understand Taiwan’s vibrant literary landscape, she added.
With a BA in theater arts from National Sun Yat-sen University and a masters in illustration from the U.K.’s Kingston University, Ballboss was also selected for the exhibition in 2019 and 2022. The artist said his latest work has special meaning to him due to the extensive field research and interviews he undertook to create it, adding that the Taiwanese version also presented a new challenge.
Established in 1967 and considered one of the longest-running and most successful Bologna book fair initiatives, the exhibition attracted 21,870 submissions from 4,374 artists representing 89 countries and territories this year. The final selection came down to 76 artworks by 77 authors from 29 countries, and the winning works will be on display from March 31 to April 3, followed by a two-year global tour, the MOC said. (SFC-E)
Write to Taiwan Today at ttonline@mofa.gov.tw
from Taiwan Today – Top News