Authors
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Marta Bartolj

Marta Bartolj

Author

Illustrator

Marta Bartolj (1979) was born in Novo Mesto, Slovenia. After graduating from the Arthouse College of Visual Arts, Ljubljana, in 2011, she pursued her postgraduate master’s studies at the Academy of Fine Arts and Design, Ljubljana, where she immersed herself in illustration. The wordless book she made for her final project before earning her master’s degree in 2016 won a student award of the University of Ljubljana Academy of Fine Arts and Design. The book, the first one she authored, was published as ‘Kje si?’ (‘Where Are You?’ / 'One Small Kindness') by Miš Publishing in 2018, and received a special prize as an outstanding wordless picture book at the 2018 Kristina Brenkova Awards. The style of her illustrations is distinctively diverse, from playful and childlike to gentle lyricism. Marta loves to put on her illustrator’s shoes – they are the ones she feels most comfortable in.

foto: Boštjan Pucelj

Awards

2021 Amazon Best Children's Books of 2021, ages 3-5, Every Little Kindness / Kje si? (Chronicle Books / Miš Publishing).
2021 Nomination for the Kristina Brenkova Award, Ozimnica (Nina Mav Hrovat, Zala Publishing).
2021 The Golden Pear Label for the book "Vprašanje za babico?" (Nina Mav Hrovat, Miš Publishing).
2021 Every Little Kindness, Chronicle Books, selected by Amazon Editors as one of the Amazon Best Books of the Month, for ages 3-5y.
2021 Finalist for the 55th Illustrators Exhibition Bologna.
2020 Finalist for the BIBF Ananas Illustration Awards/International Illustration Exhibition.
2020 The Golden Pear Label for the book "Will everything be all right?" (Cvetka Sokolov, Miš Publishing).
2020 The White Ravens for "Will everything be all right?" (Cvetka Sokolov, Miš Publish.).
2019 IBBY Silent Books Collection: from the world to Lampedusa and back - "Kje si?" on the Honour list 2019.
2019 The Golden Pear Label, "Kje si?".
2019 The White Ravens, "Kje si?".
2018 The nomination and Special prize for the book "Kje si?" ("Where are you?") as an outstanding wordless picture book at the 2018 Kristina Brenkova Awards.
2016 UL ALUO Student's Award for her Master's Thesis.
2015 7th Brumen (shortlisted)