“BO it!” Is a cultural initiative promoted by the associations Il Civico 32 and MenoPerMeno in Bologna, with the contribution of the Fondazione del Monte di Bologna e Ravenna and COOP Adriatica, supported by the Comune di Bologna, Bologna Welcome, Bologna Children’s Book Fair, Galleria Millenium, CotaBo, in collaboration with the Academy of Fine Arts of Bologna, Cooperativa Nazareno and Autori di Immagini, Banco Artigiano and Museo Civico Archeologico di Bologna, technical sponsor Maimeri. It is also open to further territorial realities (Associations and private subjects) with whom we are in contact.

Bologna vista dal Mondo

The idea

The international illustration competition “BO it!” aims to enhance the city of Bologna through an artistic and creative interpretation of the icons that identify it, such as monuments and other symbols: Bologna described by those who live there, those who imagine it, who discovers it as a tourist and by those who arrive as a migrant.

Redesigning the image of a rapidly changing, increasingly international, multi-ethnic and culturally rich city, is the goal of this competition. Through a creative work, we aim to reflect and express this change, to give a contemporary interpretation, starting from new looks over the city.

Acknowledgments

Thanks to Chiara Boschiero for the idea of the competition, to Renata Giannelli for the conception and realization of the competition logo, to Simona Boldini for the idea of the name BO it! and thanks to Neva Frau, president of That’s a Mole! Association for the inspiration.

L'idea - BO it! Immaginando Bologna

The Contest

The competition is international and open to everyone of any age; it is possible to participate as an individual or as a group of people. Participants are asked to create an illustration, a graphic interpretation or a decorative motif within or outside (or both) the outline of a monument or icon, provided in an annex to the call, with free technique.

Each year a different shape will be proposed. The outline for the 2019 edition is the Two Towers: the Asinelli and the Garisenda. A qualified jury will select up to 30 works for one or more urban exhibitions, including three winners (one of these will be reserved for people with disabilities and migrants). One of the goals of BO it! is to promote the inclusion of people with disabilities and migrants, by providing them, through training activities and dedicated tools to access the call, the opportunity to give their contribution to an artistic vision of the city of Bologna.

The shape for the 2021 edition is the Porticus of Bologna. It’s an invitation to reinvent the relationship between city and community, sharing the emotions lived during the lockdown, with the hopes and desires for the restart.

Awards

Three winning works will be awarded. The prizes are as follows:
1) First Prize “City of Bologna”: € 1,200.00
2) Second Prize “Città dei Portici”: € 600.00
3) Third Prize “Maimeri”: Fine arts articles – supply based on the technique used by the candidate

The selected works will be presented to the public in a first urban exhibition, that will be held in a downtown area selected by the Academy of Fine Arts of Bologna, in conjunction with the events of the Children’s Book Fair (June 14-17, 2021). Other urban exhibitions will be provided throughout the year. The works will be evaluated by a highly qualified jury composed by experts in the field of illustration, visual communication and representatives of the sponsoring institutions.

The winners will be announced during the award ceremony and the inauguration of the exhibition of the selected works will be exhibited at the public in an urban exhibition that will be held in Bologna, in a space in center city, in conjunction with the Bologna Children’s Book Fair – Children’s Book Fair (12-15 April 2021). Other urban exhibitions will be planned during the year. In a casa of health emergency is still ongoing, both the award ceremony and the final exhibition will be held online.

BO it! Imagining Bologna

International illustration competition – Second edition 2020/2021

Bologna vista dal Mondo

The idea

Acknowledgments

The Contest

Awards

The Call

Results

Award ceremony and exhibition