Collection of the Award-Winning Publications of the Best Book Design 2024 Contest
In 2024, the International Book Arsenal Festival, in cooperation with the Goethe-Institut Ukraine, held the Best Book Design Contest for the ninth time.
The international jury selected the winner of the Grand Prix and the winners and finalists in five nominations:
- Word Book
- Art Book
- Utilitarian Book
- Visual Storytelling
- Experiment
The jury also awarded seven Special Honors.
The collection of the award-winning books and finalists of the Contest represents Ukraine in the international competition Best Book Design from all over the World, organized by the German Foundation Buchkunst, and at other national and international venues. This year, the book-holder of one of the special honors for the feeling of the material—Behind Blue Eyes (сuration, editing, translation—the Charity Project Behind Blue Eyes in collaboration with Readellion Publishing, art team, design, layout—Havhav bureau (Mariia Havrysh, Volodymyr Havrysh), got shortlisted for the world contest.
The Best Book Design 2024 Contest was held with the financial support of the German Ministry of State for Culture and the Media.
Project partners: Frankfurter Buchmesse and Foundation Buchkunst.
Collection Best Book Design from all over the World – 2024
Since 1991, the competition and exhibition Best Book Design from all over the World has been organized by the Foundation Buchkunst (Art of Book) in Frankfurt/Leipzig. Only those books which have already won awards in their national competitions are eligible for the selection. Due to this independent selection of their best, all countries can present the current state of their book art. Thus every year, the winners of the Best Book Design Contest from Book Arsenal participate in the global competition, where the international jury of experts reviews hundreds of award-winning titles from national competitions of over 30 countries.
We are pleased to present the collection of books that won the Best Book Design from all over the World competition in 2024.
In 2024, THE GOLDENE LETTER, the highest award of the jury, was awarded to the publication Walking as Research Practice, which had previously been honored in book design competitions in the Netherlands and Switzerland.
Thirteen other awards—one gold medal, two silver medals, five bronze medals and five honorary diplomas—went to books from Denmark, Germany, China, Finland, France, Norway, Switzerland and the Czech Republic.
Project partner: Foundation Buchkunst, Germany
BRAW Amazing Bookshelf-2025 – European Selection
The BolognaRagazzi Awards of the Bologna Book Fair annually evaluates thousands of children’s books from different countries and regions of the world, selects winners and awards special honors in five categories: Fiction, Non-Fiction, Opera Prima, Comics and Toddler. The jury may also assign a special New Horizons award to a particularly innovative work.
Conceived and created to develop intelligence, curiosity and thirst for knowledge of a younger audience, picture books are increasingly becoming a cultural product of great interest to all audiences, not just to children. Among them there are works of extraordinary sophistication and amazing ingenuity. Along with the works of famous authors, we showcase the works of the authors who will become famous names of tomorrow.
We are pleased to present the European selection of the publications that gained great admiration of the international jury of experts, critics and journalists who evaluated the world’s outstanding book products in the BRAW competition in 2025.
The selection was first exhibited at the Bologna Children’s Book Fair in March 2025 and, within our partnership, was provided to Book Arsenal for presenting to the Ukrainian audience.
Project partner: Bologna Children’s Book Fair
Selection of Japanese Children’s Books
The Japan Foundation (JF) and the Japanese Board on Books for Young People (JBBY) are pleased to present a collection of children’s books, including long-selling titles as well as recently published picture books and storybooks in the following categories:
- What’s new? Japanese picture books published in 2023–2024 you don’t want to miss
- Books for infants and very young children
- Chapter books and novels for young people
- Books by 2026 Hans Christian Andersen Award nominees from Japan TOMIYASU Yoko (author) and ABE Hiroshi (illustrator)
The Japan Foundation (JF) was founded in 1972. JF conducts international cultural exchange programs throughout the world, including projects to introduce diverse facets of Japanese culture, from traditional to contemporary arts, including theater performances, art exhibitions, film screenings, as well as literary and other events.
The Japanese Board on Books for Young People (JBBY) was established in 1974 as the Japanese Section of the International Board on Books for Young People (IBBY), a non-profit international network of people from all over the world who are committed to bringing books and children together. Since its founding, JBBY has been active in international cooperative programs and as the Japan Section of IBBY.
Exhibition of Artist’s Books by Students of the Department of Graphic Arts of the National Academy of Visual Arts and Architecture
Over the past decades, an artist’s book has become a self-sufficient and recognizable media in the current Ukrainian book processes and contemporary art. The artist’s book is a complex art project, where the author works out all the details, starting from the concept, visual and textual content to the creation of the book as an integral unique work.
The exhibition showcases projects by students of the Department of Graphic Arts of the National Academy of Visual Arts and Architecture, created over the past few years. Each of the books has its own story, forms and techniques of implementation, that reveal the possibilities of book art. Despite the fact that these are young artists’ projects, the works present a fresh and professional cross-section of the artist’s book in Ukraine. As a result, for two years in a row, the students’ projects have been recognized in the Experiment nomination of the Best Book Design Contest.
The Department of Graphic Arts of the National Academy of Visual Arts and Architecture trains future graphic artists and illustrators. One of the main directions is advanced education in the field of book art, including the artist’s book.
The focus of the training is on the study of Ukrainian book graphics and its combination with modern techniques of implementation and relevant concepts of art projects. The students actively participate in professional exhibitions and festivals, representing young Ukrainian art.
Project curator: Olena Staranchuk
Project partner: National Academy of Visual Arts and Architecture