Aksinja Kermauner

Aksinja Kermauner (1956) is a professor of Slovene language, fine arts, typhlopedagogue, writer and poet. For 25 years she taught at the Institute for Blind and Visually Impaired Youth in Ljubljana (today IRIS Centre). In 2010 she received her PhD from the Department of Special and Rehabilitation Pedagogy at the Faculty of Education at the University of Ljubljana, and after that lectured on inclusive pedagogy at the Faculty of Education at the University of Primorska and the University of Maribor. She has published 42 books of fiction for children, youth and adults. She leads many projects aimed at improving the inclusion of people with disabilities into society. She is a member of the Slovene Writers’ Association and vice-president of the Slovene Association of Special and Rehabilitation Educators. Her YA novel In zmaj je pojedel sonce (The Dragon Ate the Sun), which is an original travel book about China, but also a for the sighted to the land of the blind, was nominated fort he Desetnica Award. Her last book for children is Kamnožerji (Stone-Eaters), which she wrote in collaboration with Janja Plazar and illustrator Galina Miklínova.

Alenka Sottler

Alenka Sottler (1958) has illustrated more than 50 books and been featured in numerous solo exhibitions and selections. She focuses mainly on interpreting classic and contemporary fairy tales. For her illustrator’s interpretation of Grimms’ Cinderella, she received the Golden Apple at the Biennial of Illustration Bratislava, a nomination for the Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award, and the Grand Prix at the Croatian Biennial of Illustration. She was also shortlisted in the House of Illustration and The Folio Society’s inaugural Book Illustration Competition in London. Her series of illustrations for adults Good Morning, which was displayed in two independent exhibitions at the Kibla and Alkatraz galleries, received the Prešeren Fund Award. She was nominated for the Hans Christian Andersen Award and also received the Gold Medal for Book Illustration from the Society of Illustrators in New York, of which she is an invited member. In 2022 she illustrated the acclaimed book The Original Bambi, published by Princeton University Press.

Aleš Šteger

Aleš Šteger (1973) is a poet, writer, editor and promoter of numerous literary and cultural initiatives and, thanks to his numerous translations into foreign languages, is considered one of the most internationally recognised Slovene authors. In 2015, his debut YA novel, Kurent, was published, which he adapted from his own play text for a puppet musical for children.

Ana Maraž

Ana Maraž (1985) creates highly stylised illustrations with a characteristically minimalist and flat style. She exhibits her works in Slovenia and abroad. Her illustrations have been published in the Cicido, Ciciban, and Galeb magazines, and can also be found in the books How Long Is Time by Mate Dolenc (2019), Caress the Wind by Miroslav Košuta (2011), and Rainstop Soup by Majda Koren (2023). Her illustrations in the book Caress the Wind received the Best Book Illustration Award at Ilustrofest in Belgrade and the Golden Pear Rating, while her illustrations for How Long Is Time were included in the Golden Pinwheel in Shanghai and received a Special Mention at the Slovenian Biennial of Illustration. The illustrations for Rainstop Soup were selected for the exhibition at the Bologna Children’s Book Fair. She has also received the Hinko Smrekar Distinction.

Ana Razpotnik Donati

Ana Razpotnik Donati (1978) is an illustrator who has focused mainly on children’s and young adult illustration since 2005. Among others, she has illustrated works by Janja Vidmar, Peter Svetina, Tatjana Kokalj, Ida Mlakar, Sebastijan Pregelj, Mateja Gomboc, and Miroslav Košuta. She also regularly illustrates various children’s magazines and participates in solo and group exhibitions. Her tongue-in-cheek style is characterised by humour, distinct colours, and an eye for detail. She received the Best Book Design Award in the Children’s and Young Adult category for The Lie and Her Groom, which she illustrated as part of Fran Milčinski’s Bootale series (2009–2013). Several of her works have received the Golden Pear Rating, and she has been nominated for the Kristina Brenkova Original Slovenian Picture Book Award.

Ana Zavadlav

Ana Zavadlav (1970) is an academically trained painter and illustrator. She graduated in painting from the Academy of Fine Arts and Design in Ljubljana, and went on to specialise in graphic arts. Following her studies, she spent some time working as a graphic artist, but has focused mainly on book illustration for children and young adults since 2002. She regularly contributes to the Ciciban and Cicido magazines. Her works have been displayed in several solo and group exhibitions. Her illustrations for Toon Tellegen’s book The Healing of the Cricket were exhibited at the 2019 Bologna Children’s Book Fair. In 2023 some of her works for Italo Calvino’s Italian Folktales were featured in the Fair’s Italian Excellence: Illustrations for the Italo Calvino competition, which featured unique and innovative interpretations of Calvino by 30 illustrators, selected from among 521 authors from 47 countries. Zavadlav has received several accolades and awards, including the Levstik Award, placement on the IBBY Honour List, and a nomination for the Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award.

Ančka Gošnik Godec

Ančka Gošnik Godec (1927) is an academically trained painter and illustrator. She belongs to the generation of illustrators who were key to the development and establishment of this artistic discipline in Slovenia. At the very beginning of her creative career, her works were published in the Ciciban, Pionir, and Pionirski list magazines, followed by illustrations for many well-known books. Several volumes of folk tales with her illustrations have left their mark on many generations of Slovenians. Gošnik Godec is a painter with a strong sense of the Slovenian landscape and Slovenian material heritage, and, as a result of this, her illustrations often carry an ethnological value. She has illustrated around 130 books, and many of her images have been collected in the anthology The Golden Bird (2011). She has received numerous awards, including the Levstik Award multiple times, the Levstik Lifetime Achievement Award, the Hinko Smrekar Lifetime Achievement Award, and the IBBY International Accolade.

Andreja Peklar

Andreja Peklar (1962) is an illustrator and author of children’s picture books, in which she often uses images and small miracles from nature to talk about the fundamental revelations of our existence. She graduated in painting from the Academy of Fine Arts and Design in Ljubljana. In addition to original picture books, which have been translated into more than ten languages, she has also illustrated numerous books by other authors, textbooks, as well as magazines. She has had a series of solo illustration exhibitions, and also participates in prominent illustration selections in Slovenia and abroad. She has received a number of awards and nominations, including the Kristina Brenkova Original Slovenian Picture Book Award three times, the Hinko Smrekar Accolade, first prize at the Sharjah Exhibition for Children’s Book Illustrations, the Best of the Best Award at the Hiii Illustration competition in China, and the Purple Island Award at the Nami Concours in South Korea. She has also been named to the IBBY Honour List. In 2018, her illustrations were included in one of the most prominent illustration exhibitions at the Bologna Children’s Book Fair. Her books have been translated into more than twelve languages.

Anja Štefan

Anja Štefan (1969) is a poet, writer, and storyteller whose poems and fairytales, illustrated by the best Slovene illustrators, address both children and adults. Her work is included in school reading books and anthologies. Plays based on her stories are staged in Slovene puppet theatres. Most notable among her works are Bobek in barčica (Bobby and the Boat) (Mladinska knjiga, 2005), Lonček na pike (A Pot With Spots) (Mladinska knjiga, 2008) and the more recent Zajčkova hišica (Rabbit’s Little House) (Mladinska knjiga, 2021) and Štiri črne mravljice (Four Black Ants) (Mladinska knjiga, 2022). In 2015 an anthology of her work was published, entitled Svet je kakor ringaraja (The World Is Like Ring-a-ring o’ Roses) (Mladinska knjiga, 2015). Last year she was the first Slovene children’s book author to receive the Prešeren Fund Award, Slovenia’s main award in the arts. She is the founder of the Slovene Storytelling Festival, which she ran for 20 years. With her sensitive adaptations she brought numerous folktales to life, published either individually or as more extensive volumes of selected tales. In 2018, the European Year of Cultural Heritage, she was chosen as the ambassador of cultural-artistic education in Slovenia.

Anka Kočevar

Anka Kočevar (1982) graduated in painting from the Academy of Fine Arts and Design in Ljubljana. She illustrates books and texts for the Ciciban, Cicido, and Galeb children’s literary magazines. In her illustrations she explores different directions of artistic expression, which sometimes leads her to a dramatically realistic drawing, and at other times to flat collages with a humorous or lyrical nature. She received a Special Mention at the Slovenian Biennial of Illustration for her illustrations in the documentary film A Thousand Hours of Bitterness for a Single Hour of Joy. The book All Sorts of Parents and Children, which she illustrated, was nominated for the Book of the Year Award at the Slovenian Book Fair, as well as the Desetnica Award. In addition to illustrating literature, she also works in the fields of animated film and comics.