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We are happy to announce the fourth edition of the international competition for an illustrated children's book project CLAIRVOYANTS!
The children's books world is intriguing and inexhaustible and there is still a lot to discover. In our publishing house we always support artists and authors that pay special attention to the quality of children’s books, both in terms of their content and form. Therefore, once again we invite authors, illustrators, graphic designers and all book lovers from Poland and abroad to participate in the international competition for an illustrated children's book project Clairvoyants!
Due to the ongoing epidemic situation, 2020 edition will be a bit different than the editions organized in the past. We slightly changed the rules of submitting the projects and the organization of the jury session, and we have prepared a special surprise for the winners!
This is already the fourth edition of the contest. Over 1,500 entries from all over the world were submitted to the three previous editions! More and more books based on the awarded projects can be already found on bookshelves and we have been working with other Clairvoyant participants on the new, upcoming books.
After each edition of the CLAIRVOYANTS, the most captivating entries are compiled to create a post-competition exhibition. Exhibitions from three previous editions have been travelling all over Poland and were exhibited in many schools, libraries and cultural institutions.
What will the fourth – pandemic – edition of CLAIRVOYANTS look like?
We invite debutants and experienced artists from Poland and abroad to participate in the competition, performing individually or as a team. Participants must be at least 18 years old.
The purpose of the competition is to prepare a project (draft) of an illustrated children’s book in Polish or in English language. Submission should include a storyboard or a script of the whole book, together with 3 finished double spreads and a summary in English (obligatory) and in Polish (only if the whole project is in Polish).
The novelty of this edition is that the works should be submitted online only!
Applications must be made by the 15th of December 2020. To enter the competition you have to:
a) fill-in the online application form
and
b) upload the digital files containing the competition project to the online application form or include in the form a direct link to the files, from which the files can be downloaded
We will not accept applications sent by traditional mail. Competition works should only be submitted as digital files.
The application process is described in detail in the FAQ section.
If you are looking for an illustrator or author to create a competition project together, we invite you to the new Facebook group „JASNOWIDZE, łączcie się! / CLAIRVOYANTS, get together!”. You may find your creative team partner there!
The submitted entries will be assessed by two independent juries:
1. The international jury: Jutta Bauer, Romana Romanyszyn, Joanna Olech and Piotr Socha.
2. The Dwie Siostry Publishing jury: Ewa Stiasny, Jadwiga Jędryas, Maciej Byliniak.
Submitted projects will be assessed according to the following criteria: artistic quality, originality, the form which inspires child’s imagination and the content which is aware of the child’s sensitivity. This year the jury sitting will take place in remote mode, via Internet.
Competitors may be awarded with three different prizes:
• The main prize of EUR 2,500 and two honourable mentions – by the international jury;
• Book publication – by the Dwie Siostry Publishing House jury;
• Admission in the post-competition exhibition.
This time an additional surprise awaits the winners!
At the end of May 2021, just after the opening of the post-competition exhibition, we will invite the authors of the awarded and mentioned entries to take part in masterclass workshops lead by the jurors of the fourth edition of the competition!
Competition results will be announced on the 1st of April 2021.
Before submitting a project please read the regulations as well as the FAQ section.
Competition regulations:
• online
• PDF file to be downloaded
Apply here: ONLINE APPLICATION FORM
Press-info: PDF
See you in two years!
The third edition of the international competition for an illustrated children's book project Clairvoyants 2018/2019 came to its end.
The vernissage of the post-competition exhibition is behind us – now it's time to sum up all the competition.
Each subsequent edition of the competition brings new experiences, ideas and emotions. We are proud and honoured that so many people from all over the world want to participate in the Clairvoyants competition and send us their book’s projects. Thanks to the work of two independent juries consisting of renowned authors and publishers of children's books, we can guarantee that each submitted project was carefully analysed and took into consideration.
Once again, thank you to all the participants of the third edition of the Clairvoyants! Thank you for the work that you put into the projects, for your imagination and for the sensitivity to the needs of child’s readers. The submitted works were inspiring, they touched on a variety of topics and proved how much still there is to explore in the domain of children’s literature.
We already invite you to participate in the fourth edition!
What will remain after the competition is the post-competition exhibition Clairvoyants 2018/2019. The exhibition is composed of the awarded and mentioned works as well as the 40 best projects selected by the jury. We can admire various styles, ideas and artistic inspirations that form a cohesive whole.
The projects will be exhibited in Galeria Milano until the 3rd of June (in the opening hours of the gallery:
Mon. – Fri. 11.00 AM – 7.00 PM, Sat. 11.00 AM – 3.00 PM).
From 10th to 28th of June the exhibition will be presented in a Children’s Library (40a Tyniecka St., Warsaw).
We will inform about next destinations of the post-competition exhibition.
Photos from the opening of the exhibition to be seen in 'gallery' section in the gallery section.
Opening of the post-competition exhibition!
The opening of the exhibition will be a perfect moment to congratulate the winners and all participants of the third edition of the Clairvoyants competition and to thank everyone who helped us organise it.
The projects will be exhibited in Galeria Milano until the 3rd of June (in the opening hours of the gallery: Mon. – Fri. 11.00 AM – 7.00 PM, Sat. 11.00 AM – 3.00 PM).
In June the exhibition will be presented in a Children’s Library (40a Tyniecka St., Warsaw).
Results of the III edition
The third edition of the Clairvoyants competition has come to an end, and it was as rich and inspiring as the previous two. We are glad to see a growing interest in the competition, both in Poland and abroad, proven by the number of submissions. In this edition we received 530 projects from 35 countries: 370 from Poland and 160 from all over the world! The submitted entries represented a vast range of styles, conventions and genres of children’s books, and their authors demonstrated an impressive creativity.
The jury sitting took place at the end of February in Royal Łazienki Park in Warsaw. Projects were evaluated by two independent juries.
Invitation for a discussion with CLAIRVOYANTS 2018 jury members
Illustrated children's books in the XXI century. What are they like? What could they be like? What will they be like? - a first ‘CLAIRVOYANTS after hours’ meeting
We are happy to invite you to the discussion on illustrated children's books with the jury of the international competition for an illustrated children's book project CLAIRVOYANTS 2018. The event will take place on the 28th of February at 7 pm in Goethe Institute (13a Chmielna Street, Warsaw, Poland).
The competition will be a starting point for the discussion about current trends, artistic perspectives, directions of development and the future of illustrated books for children.
JWhat is the role of picture books in the era of electronic media domination?
Are the contemporary children’s books different than the ones read by our parents in their childhood?
What should a good picture book be like?
What is the future of illustrated books?
What are the picture book markets like in Poland, Germany and Portugal?
Are there any specific characteristics of illustrated books created in these countries?
How the current trends and tendencies of creating books for children influence the projects submitted for this edition of the Clairvoyants competition?
These, and many more topics will be discussed among the jury members of the Clairvoyants competition – artists, publishers and experts in children's literature from Poland, Germany and Portugal. They will talk about their reflections on the third edition of the competition and about their wide experience as creators and publishers of children's books.
It will be a unique opportunity to meet and talk to the representatives of three areas of the publishing world from Poland and abroad:
• editors – Ewa Stiasny, Jadwiga Jędryas and Maciej Byliniak from Dwie Siostry Publishing House, as well as Bernardo P. Carvalho – an illustrator and the owner of the Portuguese publishing house Planeta Tangerina
• artists and children’s books creators from Poland and abroad – Rotraut Susanne Berner – a highly acclaimed German illustrator of children’s books, Bernardo P. Carvalho (already mentioned above) and PIOTR KARSKI – a designer and author of children’s books
• and Anna Maria Czernow, literary critic and academic teacher specializing in children's literature, president of IBBY Poland (International Board on Books for Young People).
The discussion will be led by a journalist Aldona Łaniewska-Wołłk.
Goethe Institut in Warsaw is the co-host of the meeting.
Call for entries closes!
We have just finished registering the last CLAIRVOYANTS entry!
This has already been a third edition of the international competition for an illustrated children's book project CLAIRVOYANTS, but every time we are astonished by the number of entries.
This time we have received 530 projects from 35 countries: Australia, Belarus, Belgium, Brazil, Bulgaria, China, Colombia, Czech Republic, Estonia, France, Georgia, Germany, Greece, Hong Kong, Hungary, India, Iran, Ireland, Italia, Latvia, Lithuania, Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Russia, Scotland, Singapore, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Turkey, Taiwan, Ukraine, United Kingdom and United States!
At the end of February we will hold a jury sitting in Warsaw. The jury members will look through all the projects and choose the winners of the third edition of the competition. We will announce them on the 1st of April!
Also we would like to inform you about changes regarding our jury teams. On behalf of the Dwie Siostry Publishing the works will be assessed by Ewa Stiasny, Jadwiga Jędryas and Maciej Byliniak. The international jury will be composed of Rotraut Susanne Berner, Bernardo P. Carvalho, Anna Maria Czernow and Piotr Karski.
International competition for an illustrated children's book project. Third edition.
We are happy to announce the third edition of the international competition for an illustrated children's book project CLAIRVOYANTS 2018!
Since the very beginning, the competition has been very popular among Polish and foreign artists. Almost 1000 projects from all over the world have been submitted for the previous two editions! Some of the awarded projects - new, fresh and intriguing titles for children - can be already found in bookshops, and others are slowly but surely following their steps.
Every edition of the competition is followed by an exhibition of the most original and captivating entries, that travels around libraries, schools and various cultural institutions in Poland and abroad. The first ’CLAIRVOYANTS 2014’ exhibition has been published as well as an interactive post-competition catalogue and the ‘CLAIRVOYANTS 2016’ exhibition was accompanied by a short animation – ‘The Prophecy’.
This year we are thrilled to announce that ‘CLAIRVOYANTS 2018’ has been recognized by the Polish Ministry of Culture and National Heritage and received the financial support from their ‘Visual Arts Grant Program’.
We continue to cherish the ideas and values that had underlain the previous editions of the contest: the ambition to awake the creative potential of young artists and authors, the care for an aesthetic and editorial quality of children’s books, the pursuit to determine the highest standards in the field and to support development of Polish children’s books and their perception abroad.
The direct aim of the competition is to launch the process of creating beautiful and valuable books for children as well as to discover the talented artists and children’s books authors and give them a chance to become known both on the Polish and on the international book market.
The competition is open to both newcomers and experienced artists and children’s books authors from Poland and abroad, participating individually or in a team. Participants need to be at least 18 years old.
The purpose of the competition is to prepare a project (draft) of an illustrated children’s book in Polish or in English language. Submitted works should include a script or a storyboard of the whole book, together with 3 finished double spreads and the cover.
Submitted projects will be assessed according to the following criteria: artistic quality, originality, the form which inspires child’s imagination and the content which is aware of the child’s sensitivity.
The submitted entries will be assessed by two independent juries:
1. The international jury: Susanne Rotraut Berner, Bernardo P. Carvalho, Joanna Olech and Piotr Karski
2. The Dwie Siostry Publishing jury: Ewa Stiasny, Jadwiga Jędryas, Joanna Rzyska, Maciej Byliniak.
Competitors may be awarded with three different prizes:
1. The main prize of EUR 2,500 and two honourable mentions – by the international jury;
2. Book publication – by the Dwie Siostry Publishing House jury;
3. Admission in the post-competition exhibition.
To take part in the competition you need to fill-in the online application form and send the competition works via post.
Works should be submitted between 15th of November and 15th of December 2018 to the following address:
Prace konkursowe należy nadsyłać od 15 listopada do 15 grudnia 2018 roku na adres:
CLAIRVOYANTS 2018
Dwie Siostry Publishing House
al. 3 Maja 2 m. 183
00-391 Warszawa
Poland
Competition results will be announced on this website on 1st of April 2019.
Competition regulation:
• online
• .pdf file to be downloaded
Apply here: ONLINE APPLICATION FORM
Offline version of the application form (.doc) to be printed and sent via post together with the competition work.
"PROPHECY"
"PROPHECY" – a video that accompanies the post-competition exhibition of CLAIRVOYANTS 2016 (English subtitles)
Pictures from the the opening of the post-competition exhibition are to be seen in GALLERY.