Govt announces four-year funding for Australian presence at Bologna
The Australian government will provide funding of ‘more than $160,000 over four years’ to ‘promote Australian authors and illustrators through a strong Australian presence at the Bologna Children’s Book Fair’.
A spokesperson for the Minister for Arts Mitch Fifield told Books+Publishing that the funding, which covers the Bologna Children’s Book Fairs in 2017-2020, will be administered by Allen & Unwin.
As previously reported by Books+Publishing, Allen & Unwin and Books Illustrated announced in February that they would combine their stands at this year’s Bologna Children’s Book Fair to create an Australian collective stand, which will also host four small presses: Berbay Publishing, Melbournestyle Books Australia, MidnightSun Publishing and Upload Publishing.
The Australian Publishers Association has previously hosted an Australian collective stand at Bologna but was absent last year due to lack of funding from the Australia Council and lack of demand from larger publishers. Books Illustrated’s ‘Hello! from Australia’ exhibition and catalogue is funded by the Copyright Agency Cultural Fund.
The government spokesperson said the funding was provided by the Department of Communications and the Arts through its International Cultural Diplomacy Arts Fund. ‘Activities and projects are identified on a targeted basis, and the Department of Communications and the Arts may invite proposals for specific activities where funds are available,’ said the spokesperson.
Category: Junior Local news