The stand, Catalonia, Land of Books. Barcelona, City of Literature, hosts 48 Catalan publishers and 38 Catalan illustrators. It aims to present a united front to international professionals attending Bologna Children’s Book Fair, while providing Catalan professionals with a dedicated business space to conduct their activities with ease. The stand, organised by the Institut Català de les Empreses Culturals (Catalan Institute for Cultural Companies, ICEC) through its Catalan Arts brand and the Gremi d’Editors de Catalunya (Publishers' Guild of Catalonia), also hosts representatives from the Associació Professional d’Il·lustradors de Catalunya (Professional Association of Illustrators of Catalonia, APIC), the Associació d’Editors en Llengua Catalana (Association of Catalan-Language Publishers) and the Institut Ramon Llull.
Furthermore, for the first time, IBBY.cat – the Catalan branch of the International Board on Books for Young People (IBBY) via the Organización Española para el Libro Infantil y Juvenil (Spanish Organisation for Children's and Young Adult Literature, OEPLI), of which it is a founding member – will have a dedicated space at the ICEC institutional stand to promote the 2028 IBBY World Congress, which will be held in Barcelona.
The 48 publishers represented at the ICEC stand (Hall 29 / Stand D8 - E7) are: Akiara Books; Animallibres; Barcanova Editorial; Bindi Books; Blackie Books; Boldletters; Carambuco Ediciones / El Cep i la Nansa / Edita / Kairat; Coco Books; Cossetània Edicions; Edicions 62 (Estrella Polar / Fanbooks); Edicions del roure de can roca ® & Rock Oak Press; Edicions Paper d’Estrassa; Editorial Casals (Combel & Bambú); Editorial el Pirata; Editorial Finestres; Editorial Flamboyant; Editorial Juventud; Editorial Mediterrània; Editorial Nanit; Editorial Sat Nam; Editorial Stenella; Editorial Vicens Vives; Flor Edicions (Editorial Base); La Galera / Elastic Books; La Topera Editorial; Lupita Books; Mosquito Books Barcelona; MTM Editores; Norma Editorial; Obrador Editorial; Picarona / Ediciones Obelisco; Sembra Llibres; Shackleton Kids; Somnins; Takatuka; Tramuntana Editorial; Vegueta Ediciones; Yekibud Editores; and Zahorí Books. Together, they represent numerous publishing imprints.
The 38 illustrators attending the fair are: Almudena Suárez Jiménez, Anna Ruiz, Antonio José Ordóñez Cambra, Belén Perea Fernández, Berta Cusó Cuquerella, Blanca Caminal Comadira, Canizales, Christian Inaraja Genís, Cris Badalona, Cristina Curto Teixidó, Desiree Arancibia, Elena Losada Mansilla, Elena Mompó, Gemma Contreras, Glàfira Smith, Isabel Aniel, Jessica Piqueras, Judy Kaufmann, Laia Codina, Laura Cerrillo Soler, Laura Orri, Laura Tamarit, Luna Ochoa Moliner, Maite Sujar Roca, María Palet Tort , María Tolken, Maribel Castells, Mercè Galí, Mireia Aleu Barangé, Mireia Pons Lupiàñez, Montserrat Fortino Segura, Nuria Zaragoza, Rosa Pérez Nebreda, Roser Argemí i Batlle, Saioa Aginako, Sílvia Vallhonrat, Sònia Albert, Tania Manzanal i Vanesa Rovira Ardèvol. All are members of APIC.
To increase the visibility of Catalans at the Bologna event, ICEC has published a booklet detailing the participating publishers, associations and institutions, which will be distributed to accredited professionals. Furthermore, as part of the international promotion of the Catalan illustration sector, Catalan Arts provides professionals resident in the country with a digital catalogue intended as a useful reference tool to foster visibility and exchange. The catalogue currently features the work of 255 established and emerging illustrators seeking to showcase and promote their portfolios to professional audiences.
To promote the work of the illustrators present in Bologna, ICEC and APIC have jointly organised a matchmaking event on Monday 13 April with the coordinators of The Illustrators Survival Corner within the exhibition space. During this event, Catalan illustrators will have the opportunity to present their portfolios to international publishers. This will be followed by a drinks reception and networking session at the ICEC stand to foster international connections. Furthermore, the symbolic event of donating books to the Munich Library will be repeated, following the last year’s initiative led by minister Sònia Hernández Almodóvar in the Italian city.
In addition, ‘Soc una ciclopeta’, a Catalan picture book project by Martí Alcón and Emilia Esteban, has been selected by the fair for the Dpictus International Showcase, where picture book creators from around the world present their unpublished projects to be assessed by a large judging panel of top-tier international publishers. These projects are also showcased online to hundreds of publishers within the dPICTUS community. Outstanding projects from previous editions have been acquired by publishers worldwide, and many participating artists have successfully attracted the interest of editors and literary agents. The work ‘Soc una ciclopeta’ has also been adapted into a puppet show that is currently on tour.
The Institut Ramon Llull will also have a dedicated space for professional meetings with international literary agents and publishers. Over the course of more than 70 scheduled meetings, the institute will present the resources and services available to foreign professionals in the children's and young adult book sector, as well as the new booklet dedicated to this genre, which includes 20 recently published titles that present an overview of themes, trends and styles, as well as a notable collection of publishers, agents, writers and illustrators.
It is also worth noting that The Braw Amazing Bookshelf, the fair's renowned exhibition featuring a carefully curated selection of 150 children's books from around the world, includes five titles illustrated by Catalan artists:
- Cristina Sardà, La vaca, el médico y el hijo del jardinero (The Cow, the Doctor and the Gardener's Son), Fulgencio Pimentel, Spain, 2025
- Cristian Robles, Mal de ojo (Evil Eye), Bang & Mamut comics, Spain, 2024
- Javier González, Lluïsot, Mi Padre es un Hombre Lobo (My Dad is a Werewolf), Pastel de Luna, Spain, 2025
- Alfonso Ochoa, Enric Rodríguez, Pequeños gigantes (Little Giants), Alboroto ediciones, Mexico, 2025
- Júlia Sardà, The Witch in the Tower, Walker Books, United Kingdom, 2025
The presence of Catalan publishers and illustrators at this fair forms part of the Department of Culture’s efforts to promote Catalan literature and the internationalisation of publishers and illustrators in this sector. To this end, it regularly participates in major professional book fairs, including London Book Fair, Buenos Aires International Book Fair, Frankfurt Book Fair and Guadalajara International Book Fair in Mexico.
