While visiting Tanglin Trust school in Singapore last Autumn, I was introduced to Kenneth Quek, director of the Singapore Book Council. Every year the Book Council has a major festival called the Asian Festival of Children’s Content. I am thrilled to have been invited to speak in several slots this year, as well as return to the Tanglin School.
And so, in just 3 weeks time, I’ll be jetting off for almost two weeks of talks and events and murals. I’ll be catching up with old friends – including a student I taught at Cambridge, now an art teacher in Singapore, and Ben, the librarian at Tanglin school – and, I hope, making some new ones. I loved Singapore last time round and I also hope to find time to do a bit more sketching and exploring. It’s such an interesting country, so different to anywhere else I have ever visited and everyone was exceptionally friendly and welcoming. Anyone interested in how publishing works in Asia should definitely go along to the Festival. It’s a rapidly expanding market, especially in China since the single child policy was reversed. This is a wonderful opportunity to meet publishers, educators and book-sellers in this extremely important continent, full of useful and expanding territories. Katie, for example, has only relatively recently been taken on by Chinese, Japanese and Korean publishers, despite success in Europe for a quarter of a century. If any of you do come, make sure you say “hello”. Here’s where you will find me:
May 26th – 29th I will be creating a mural at Tanglin Trust school with pupils.
Then from May 30th to June 3rd I will be attending the Festival at the National Library. And here are links to my events:
WRITER’S & ILLUSTRATOR’S CONFERENCE:
EVERY PICTURE TELLS A STORY: A talk by JAMES MAYHEW about Visual Literacy (1st June 2014 @ 9.15).
With LEONARD MARCUS (Author, Critic, Historian), KATHLEEN AHRENS (Author), JUNKO YOKOTA (Professor of Reading and Language, National College of Education, National-Louis University, Chicago, USA), JAVIER ZABALA (Illustrator), JAMES MAYHEW (Illustrator)
PRE-SCHOOL & PRIMARY CONFERENCE:
CRITIQUING A PICTURE BOOK (31st May 2014 @ 12.00)
With LEONARD MARCUS and JAMES MAYHEW
There is also an exhibition on during the festival, featuring prints of illustrators, including Yiting, who I also taught in Cambridge. You can see some of the art here: http://afcc.com.sg/home/big
Lastly, I have been challenged to a duel! Yes really! and my weapon? a paint brush!!! I will be duelling with Singapore illustrator David Lieu, sketching along as a picture-book text (unpublished) is read out for the first time! 30th May, 2.20. Here’s a link: http://bookcouncil.sg/blog/page/duelling-illustrators-afcc-2014
And here’s the poster!
I quite like the idea of being called “The Mayhem”. All I can say is, watch out Mr Liew!
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