FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Toronto (November 19, 2021) —The Canadian Children’s Book Centre (CCBC) is excited to announce the launch of the virtual Picture Book Gallery. Award-winning Canadian illustrators are selling original art to support the CCBC’s annual Canadian Children’s Book Week program. Illustrators are donating 60% of the value of their original art in support of the CCBC. All funds raised will contribute to connecting authors, illustrators and storytellers with young audiences across Canada, from Labrador to the Yukon. Canadian Children’s Book Week is the single most important national event celebrating Canadian children’s books and the importance of reading. Each May, hundreds of readings are given to thousands of children, teens and adults in over 100 communities across the country as we make every possible effort to reach children in more remote regions and communities. The upcoming tour will take place from May 1-7, 2022 and will be the 45th Canadian Children’s Book Week tour.
“As a former children’s librarian, I know how a piece of original art can transform a library space,” says Rose Vespa, Executive Director of the Canadian Children’s Book Centre. “Each artwork in the Picture Book Gallery is a beautiful and one-of-a-kind piece of art, perfect for a holiday gift or for use in a library, school or workplace. We are thankful to all of the illustrators for donating a portion of their sales to the CCBC and to volunteers Nancy Hartry and Bret Williams for making this project possible. These beautiful works of art will not only transform rooms, they will also help forever change the lives of children all across Canada by allowing them to take part in Canadian Children’s Book Week, which has been turning children into readers since 1977.”
Purchases can be made at thepicturebookgallery.com. Participating illustrators include Barbara Reid, Michael Martchenko, Marie-Lousie Gay, Qin Leng, Kevin Sylvester, Gary Clement, François Thisdale, Sue Todd, Debbie Ridpath Ohi, Michele Nidenoff, Anne Villeneuve, Jeremy Tankard and Soyeon Kim, with more to follow. More information about Canadian Children’s Book Week and the 2022 tour can be found at bookweek.ca.
View the PDF of this press release here.
For more information, please contact:
Emma Hunter
Marketing and Communications Coordinator
The Canadian Children’s Book Centre
416 975-0010 ext. 2
emma@bookcentre.ca
About the Canadian Children’s Book Centre
The Canadian Children’s Book Centre is a national, not-for-profit organization founded in 1976. We are dedicated to encouraging, promoting and supporting the reading, writing and illustrating of Canadian books for young readers. Our programs, publications, and resources help teachers, librarians, booksellers and parents select the very best for young readers. For more information, please visit our website.