IBBY Australia Mini Masterpiece art auction - Meet Gabrielle Wang

Begin with my previous post about Gabrielle Wang.

Gabrielle Wang is an award-winning Australian author and illustrator whose stories often blend Chinese and Western culture with elements of fantasy. A former Children’s Laureate, she draws on her rich heritage and love of art to create imaginative, heartfelt books for young readers.

Our IBBY Australia Mini Masterpiece auction has over 45 pieces including this very special illustration by Gabrielle Wang. The auction begins on 14th November.

This piece is titled Sweet Hammock

Here are some recent books by Gabrielle:

Silken Thread

Zadie Ma and the Dog who Chased the Moon

Here is the illustrated card made by Gabrielle Wang for the opening of the Melbourne Bookshop - The Little Bookroom. Twenty-Five illustrators were invited to interpret the famous bookshop logo which you can see below the piece by Gabrielle.

IBBY Australia Mini Masterpiece Art Auction - Under the Sea

Here are three more irresistible post-card sized 

original art pieces from our IBBY Auction

It begins on 14th November - mark this date in your diary so you don't miss out

Kylie Howarth

Title: Yellow Boxfish

Take a look at my post about her book Chip

Kylie Howarth

Title: Snorkeler with humpback

Ann James

Title: Whistling mermaid

IBBY Australia Mini Masterpiece Art Auction - meet Martina Heiduczek

Check out the auction site - bidding begins on 14th November 

You could own this gorgeous original illustration by Martina Heiduczek. It is titled Porcine Passengers. It would be fun to share this illustration with your library group and then perhaps read Who Sank the Boat? by Pamela Allen. 

Here are other books illustrated by Martina Heiduczek:

Duck, Apple, Egg

Under the red Shawl

What do you call your grandpa?

Katrina Nannestad "All the Beautiful Things" plus these three

The Riding Gallery

And I am keen to see these:

And this one is only in Dutch so far - look at the wonderful end papers - the English title is Shell Girl.

IBBY Australia Mini Masterpiece Art Auction two chickens and a duck

Take a look at our wonderful selection of original art.

This is a fantastic opportunity and 

you will be supporting IBBY Australia

Do you love chickens?  My own favourite animals are puffins, pelicans, hedgehogs, and cows but I do have fond memories of chickens in the backyard of a country home where my family lived for a few months when I was a small child. Collecting the warm eggs fascinated me. If you want to see heaps of picture books about chickens, take a look at my Pinterest. I also love ducks - there are so many that live along the shore of the lagoon near my home.

Ann James

Jess McGeachin

My favourite book by Jess McGeachin is Fly 

but he has so many others - click the label on this post

Lucia Masciullo

Check out my post about Eat my Dust which has links to 

lots of other books illustrated by Lucia

Meet the illustrator Barbara Reid

Image from I love you More

I am excited to be attending the IBBY Congress in Ottawa, Canada in 2026. I think Barbara Reid will be one of the presenters because she was included in their promotional video. 

Each Barbara Reid illustration starts as a pencil drawing. Then Barbara moulds out her drawing using Plasticine. You might think that her illustrations would be delicate, but they’re actually rather heavy. Some of her final pictures weigh up to three kilograms! ... Barbara even describes her artwork as being “like a pizza” because her images are created by adding layer upon layer of Plasticine and detail after detail to construct the completed work. She uses her fingers and fingernails as well as sticks, pins, combs, wires, cloth and other items to help shape and build each part of the picture. If she makes a mistake, she just peels off the offending piece and starts again! She also mixes her own colours and adds materials such as silver paint or glitter to create special effects. Scholastic.ca

Meet Barbara Reid in this video of her book Perfect Snow. Here is her website with all her books and lots of extras. You can read Quill and Quire reviews of many of Barbara Reid's books here. 

Awards: She has won the Ezra Jack Keats Award, the Vicky Metcalf Award for Literature for Young People, The Governor General’s Award for Illustration and the Ruth and Sylvia Schwartz Award. In 2013 she became a member of the Order of Canada, and in 2015 she was named Honorary Chair of Family Literacy Day. Her book Picture the Sky won the 2018 CBC Fan Choice Award and was shortlisted for the 2018 TD Canadian Children’s Literature Award.

Kirkus comments - The Subway Mouse "Bits of real litter and found bric-a-brac in Reid’s plasticine subterranean scenes add an air of authenticity to this grand tale of a mouse who leaves his cozy subway station nest to find the fabled “Tunnel’s End. ... Seen from mouse-eye level, the grimy, wonderfully detailed setting adds a tongue-in-cheek air, as well as making a properly vivid backdrop for this intrepid venture into the unknown."

Kirkus comments - Picture a Tree "The Plasticine is expressive, detailed and gestural, with emotions showing on each face and careful craft in even the tiniest leaf and twig. The background of each spread has been smoothed and textured, colored and filled with birds, leaves and airplanes. Readers will marvel at the amazing details she includes on each human and animal form—earrings, straw hats, melting ice cream—even eye-rolling teenage boys!"  Also read this review.

Meet the illustrator Sara Acton

 

Take a look at Sara Acton's portfolio

Sara Acton is an award-winning author and illustrator. Sara grew up in the Cotswolds in England and always loved drawing, especially people and other strange creatures. She studied BA Hons Fine Art and trained as an Art Teacher in London. After teaching and practicing art in England and New Zealand Sara moved with her family to Australia. Her first picture book Ben and Duck won the 2012 Children's Book Council of Australia Crichton Award for new illustrators. 

Sara Acton has generously donated an original art piece for our IBBY Australia Mini Masterpiece art auction and I have my eye set on buying this sweet image but the bidding is hot!

This image comes from Runt (CBCA Younger Readers winner 2023)

Here are some other books illustrated by Sara:

Each lovely illustration shows Jack and the blue jumper, its warmth and comfort obvious to all readers. They will understand Jack’s feeling for the garment, probably recalling something they held as dear. Acton has the ability in a few deft strokes of her pen to create a moment in time, one which is important to the protagonists and one which we all recognise. And I love the endpapers, detailing postcard moments in their life together. Read Plus

Here is my blog post about Jack's Jumper

A Boat of Stars

Tales of Mr Walker

Against white pages, we see Acton’s fantastic watercolour-style illustrations come to life, putting children and their journeys of discovering new foods front and centre. Kids will enjoy spotting foods they may know, such as birthday cake and various fruits, but might also find foods they haven’t yet come across, such as avocado and bacon. I also definitely spotted some fairy bread… 

but I won’t tell the kiddos. Better Reading

I’ll Always Be Older Than You is a kind, warm, delightful poem from an older sister to her younger brother about how their relationship will grow and develop as they mature. From the masterful Jane Godwin and with soft, pastel illustrations from Sara Acton, this book will reflect the sibling relationships in many families.  Reading Time

I borrowed a few books illustrated by Sara Acton from the library I visit each week but I have now added her name to my charity book fair shopping list. Her illustrations are so lively and joyous and Sara really knows how to use white space. I am keen to add a few of her books to my own shelves and every young cat lover needs a copy of Poppy Cat. Here are the Scholastic Teachers Notes. Sara Action also has a magical touch with emotion on the faces of her human and animal characters. Her style reminds me of Charlotte Voake and Suzy Lee.