The Ministry of Culture has announced the establishment of a national-level illustration award, the “Golden Picture Book Awards,” which includes six major categories and a total prize of NT$3.27 million (US$112,063).
Applications for the award are to run from Tuesday to Sept. 1, the ministry said in a statement on Wednesday.
The award is to feature six major categories — a special contribution award, a new illustrator award, a picture book editing award, a cross-disciplinary application award, an annual picture book award and the golden grand prize (awarded to one work of fiction and one of non-fiction), the ministry said.
Photo: CNA
Winners of the new illustrator award, annual picture book award and golden grand prize would also be eligible to apply for an additional NT$600,000 grant from the ministry to fund their next book project, it added.
The new award aims to support the development of original picture books in Taiwan and encourage excellence in picture book creation. It joins the ranks of the ministry’s other domestic awards — the Golden Tripod Awards, Golden Comic Awards and Golden Melody Awards, the ministry said.
Minister of Culture Li Yuan (李遠) recounted experience of creating picture books with his children, publishing 15 titles under the pseudonym Hsiao Yeh (小野).
The combination of text and illustration in picture books makes them highly suitable for translation and cultural export, enabling the world to learn about Taiwanese creativity, he said.
As a result, promoting picture books has become one of his key policy priorities since taking office, Li added.
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