Emerging Voices Illustration catalog - Tantàgora

Emerging Voices
14th Illustration Competition for students from art and design schools

We present the 20 illustrators selected for the Emergent Voices program, a project that identifies emerging voices who have just completed their higher cycle studies in illustration or a degree in design, and who may bring a singular perspective to the world of children’s and young adult literature.

Each participant has illustrated a text from children’s and young adult literature provided by Tantàgora, centered on a singular object: a wooden egg, creating original works full of personality that show their unique way of seeing and interpreting the world.

We invite you to discover the work of these 20 emerging voices, a unique opportunity to explore new perspectives, styles, and ideas, and to connect with fresh and creative talent.

This year, these 20 illustrators were chosen from 145 participants across 8 art schools throughout Spain, including: Escuela de Arte N.º 10 (Madrid), Escuela de Arte y Superior de Diseño de Soria, EASD Serra i Abella (Hospitalet de Llobregat), Escola d’Art i Disseny Llotja (Barcelona), Escola d’Art La Industrial (Barcelona), Escola Illa (Sabadell), EAD Sant Cugat, and Escuela de Arte y Superior de Diseño de Sevilla.

We present the four finalist works, created by illustrators who have stood out for their originality, technique narrative ability. These four talents have gone through an intensive process of creation and learning, participating in two creative residencies guided by the mentors Olga Capdevila, Alba Prado, Dàlia Adillo, Estel Boada, and Magali Homs, and the editors Cristina Peregrina, Raquel Martínez, and Marta Tutone, providing them with a comprehensive experience that combined artistic and editorial guidance.

Jury evaluation

This proposal has been selected for its uniqueness and expressive capacity through volume. The student has skillfully leveraged the shape of the object, integrating it intelligently and coherently into the overall concept.

The jury particularly valued the idea of repetition and movement, which is articulated naturally and effectively. The piece generates motion on its own, without the need for additional elements, giving it strong visual and narrative impact.

With a keen awareness of volume and delicate execution, the work becomes poetic and evocative. The carefully chosen color palette reinforces this feeling and complements the composition.

The proposal stems from a single idea extracted from the text and, with apparent simplicity, builds an entire visual narrative around it. It is a piece that invites exploration and demonstrates significant conceptual and formal maturity.

Margarita Richter Camacho

Escuela de Arte y Superior de Diseño de Sevilla

Jury evaluation

This proposal stands out for its visual and conceptual poetics, moving away from literal representation to construct a powerful metaphor of the text. The work is based on a classical technique, yet it is used in an experimental and personal way, enhancing the qualities of the material.

The jury highly valued the technical research and the deep exploration of material treatment, particularly regarding wood, which becomes a color within a monochromatic approach, yet is extremely integrated and coherent.

The work demonstrates a strong awareness of volume and support, successfully integrating color and form within the creation.

This is a proposal that demonstrates sensitivity, technical rigor, and a distinctive perspective, capable of reinterpreting the text with remarkable elegance and depth.

Najoua Nour

Escuela de Arte y Superior de Diseño de Soria

Jury evaluation

This piece stands out for its strong personality, capable of capturing attention from the very first moment and evoking an emotional response in the viewer. It does not leave anyone indifferent; it engages, surprises, and connects with the audience through fresh and distinctive expressiveness.

The use of color is particularly noteworthy, as well as the construction of the two well-defined characters, which bring dynamism and narrative depth to the proposal.

The jury especially appreciated the accurate representation of the slyness present in the original text. The work succeeds in conveying the farmer’s audacity and wit, intelligently recreating the spirit of the story while bringing a fresh and personal perspective, far from the usual aesthetic conventions found in this type of text.

Overall, it is a powerful, well-executed proposal, full of character, combining technical skill with strong expressive and narrative impact.

Jury evaluation

This proposal was selected as a finalist for its ability to appropriate the original text and transform it into a story of its own, with a singular and genuine voice. The student not only understood the text but also reinterpreted it from a personal perspective, creating a unique narrative while staying connected to the original content.

One of the most notable aspects is the use of humor, which brings freshness to the proposal, breaking expectations without losing coherence.

The proposal is also bold and innovative, both conceptually and in the way it challenges conventional norms. Formally, it demonstrates strong technical and compositional mastery, with careful control of volume and structure.

Another strength lies in the creation of characters, which help build a distinct visual universe, enhanced by a well-chosen color palette and an expressive, balanced composition.

Overall, it is a piece that complements the text with a clear personal contribution, showcasing remarkable creative, technical, and conceptual ability.

When I finally understood what it all meant, fear froze me in place. My legs gave way, I fell to the ground, and… well, I wet my bottom.

From that position, I noticed tiny black things drifting around me, like ants, or spiders, or flies.

I grabbed a handful, peered at them closely, and…

Letters? Letters? Where on earth did all these letters come from?

“The Night the Letters Broke Free“

Author(s): Pep Duran
Illustrator(s): Carme Solé Vendrell
Publisher: Els Contes d’Aram

Laura Ferrer

Escuela de Arte N.º 10

Sabrina Lainati

Escuela de Arte N.º 10

“Grasshopper Goes on a Journey”

Grasshopper wanted to go on a journey.
—I’ll find a path —he thought—.
I will follow that path wherever it may lead. One morning, Grasshopper found a path. It was long and dusty. It climbed up the hills and down into the valleys.

Author(s): Arnold Lobel
Illustrator(s): Arnold Lobel
Publisher: Ediciones Alfaguara

Ana Carolina Avilés Sobral

Escuela de Arte N.º 10

Irene Cataluña Vegara

Escuela de Arte N.º 10

Miriam García

Escuela de Arte N.º 10

Paula González

EASD Serra i Abella

The farmer, who was craftier than a fox, instantly sensed that the devil might know a lot about fire and smoke, brimstone and the damned, but about being a farmer he probably knew nothing.

So he said: —Of course, I’ll do it. If it’s alright with you, you can take the part of the harvest that’s underground, and I’ll take the part above ground.
—No way —the devil replied, angry—, the above-ground part is mine. You won’t fool me!

“Les penes del dimoni”

Author(s): Caterina Valriu
Illustrator(s): Pep Montserrat
Publisher: La Galera

Marina García Martínez

Escuela de Arte N.º 10

Lucía González Villalta

Escuela de Arte N.º 10

Ángela de Francisco

Escuela de Arte N.º 10

Najoua Nour

Escuela de Arte y Superior de Diseño de Soria

Marta Ribes García

Escola Illa

The suitcase became a real suitcase the very first time Benjamin was invited to spend the night at his little friend Romà’s house.

He was afraid to go, afraid to sleep far from Mom and Dad.

Yet still, he was brave, and with his suitcase, he felt safer.

“The Pink Suitcase”

Author: Susie Morgenstern
Illustrator: Serge Bloch
Publisher: entreDos

Gael Rivera

EASD Serra i Abella

The small country surprised the General. They had no army and offered no resistance.

In fact, the people welcomed the soldiers as if they were guests.

The General settled into the most comfortable house, and the soldiers stayed with local families.

“The Conquerors”

Author: David McKee
Illustrator: David McKee
Publisher: Kókinos

Júles Moreira Luz Rosa

Escuela de Arte N.º 10

Alberto Navarro Martínez

Escuela de Arte N.º 10

Santiago Peláez Zapata

Escuela de Arte N.º 10

Jorge Pérez Aguado

Escuela de Arte N.º 10

Sloan Fernández

Escuela de Arte N.º 10

—Miquel, tonight we’re premiering the play. I’m so nervous. I’ll be back late. Tomorrow I’ll tell you how it went…
—Okay, Mom.
It’s normal; before any premiere, a mother is always anxious and bites her nails.
—Miquel, if you want to go play at Nino’s house, it’s up to you. His mother called me. If you like…
—Maybe I will.

He paces back and forth across the living room, paper in hand, stopping to make gestures and strange faces, messing up his hair.
—Miquel, your father will be home soon. They had a recording at the TV studios today as well…
—Okay.

“Oh, Filomena, Filomena! and Other Stories”

Author(s): Miquel Obiols
Illustrator(s): Lluís Mestres
Publisher: Editorial Juventut

Ksenia Litvinova

EASD Serra i Abella

Thumbelina sailed past several towns, and the little birds flying from branch to branch would sing when they saw her: “What a delightful little girl!” The leaf kept racing down the stream, which grew wider and wider, and so Thumbelina traveled to distant lands.

Author(s): H.C. Andersen
Illustrator(s): Lisbeth Zwerger
Publisher: Destino

“Thumbelina”

Iván Yatskiv Yablinchuk

Escuela de Arte N.º 10

Margarita Richter Camacho

Escuela de Arte y Superior de Diseño de Sevilla