The illustrators
Each of the illustrators represents a continent as well as a cross-cultural view of the world, creating his or her work in spaces that defy simple definitions of place or identity but that are nevertheless deeply rooted in a culture of origin. Each has a strong and personal commitment to making our world a better place.
Diana Ejaita, of Nigerian parentage, was chosen to represent Africa. She is a designer and artist whose work draws on the centuries-old Nsibidi system of symbols and ideograms, indigenous to Southeast Nigeria. As a child of migration, she is driven by the issues of colonial and post-colonial effects, discrimination and identity.
Ying Hui Tan, born in Malaysia, represents Asia. A children’s picture book illustrator, she is deeply inspired by nature and animal-related themes and her work is infused with colour and light, reflecting the themes of love and kindness that she seeks to share. She combines traditional painting with digital techniques.
Fernando Del Hambre, representing Europe, is a Spanish illustrator, art director, animator and independent publisher, whose quirky and colourful artwork situates him on the threshhold between the familiar and the alien, the artificial and the natural. His illustrations have already featured in work for FAO and UNESCO.
Nik Neves, who represents Latin America, was born in Brazil. He is an illustrator, publisher and comic artist who has worked for National Geographic, Rolling Stone and more. His fresh, colourful and engaging drawings, which range from food to mind maps to machines, reflect an incessant curiosity about the world that we live in and how we relate to it.
Zoulikha Bouabdellah, who grew up in Algiers, represents the Middle East and North Africa. She creates installations, videos and drawings that deconstruct dominant representations to reflect upon culture, geopolitics, industrialization and the status of women. She has been awarded the Abraaj Capital and Prix Meurice prizes for her work.
Gary Taxali, representing North America, is of Indian-Canadian origins. He makes mixed-media works and paintings with a retro aesthetic, narrating his “preoccupation of constant paradoxes such as human relationships, love, isolation […] economic despair and frustration.” In 2012, Canada minted quarters featuring six of his designs.
