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CBCA Award for New Illustrator (2019-)
Crichton Award for Debut Illustrator (1988-2018)
or Crichton Award
Subcategory of Children's Book Council of Australia Awards CBCA Book of the Year Awards
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History

The first Crichton Award was announced in 1988. Wallace Raymond Crichton left an financial legacy to Children's Book Council of Australia, Victoria Branch, to recognise and award new Australian children's book illustrators.

Formerly the Crichton Award, as of 2019, the award is known as the CBCA Award for New Illustrator, and is party of the CBCA Book of the Year Awards.

Notes

  • The Crichton Award aims to recognise and encourage new talent in the field of Australian children's book illustration. The Award was created in 1988.

Latest Winners / Recipients

Year: 2023

winner y separately published work icon Tiny Wonders Sally Soweol Han , Sally Soweol Han (illustrator), St Lucia : University of Queensland Press , 2022 22597979 2022 single work picture book children's

'April thinks if her town was a colour, it would be grey. Everyone is too busy to stop and look around. How can she help them slow down?

'When she remembers the happiness that dandelions brought her grandmother, April comes up with a plan ...

'Bursting with colour, this is a sweet story about flowers, family and the wonders children wish for.'

Source : publisher's blurb

Year: 2022

winner y separately published work icon The Boy Who Tried to Shrink His Name Sandhya Parappukkaran , Michelle Pereira (illustrator), Richmond : Bright Light , 2021 21527537 2021 single work picture book children's

'When Zimdalamishkermishkada starts a new school, he knows he’s got to do something about his long name. ​

'When no amount of shrinking, folding or crumpling works, he simply settles for Zim – but deep down, it doesn’t feel right. It’s not until a new friend sees him for who he truly is that Zimdalamishkermishkada finds the confidence to step boldly into his long name. ​

'A warm and uplifting story that encourages young readers to celebrate their individuality, and shows how no-one should ever have to shrink themselves down to fit in.' ​(Publication summary)

Year: 2021

winner y separately published work icon This Small Blue Dot Zeno Sworder , Zeno Sworder (illustrator), Port Melbourne : Thames and Hudson , 2020 18853297 2020 single work picture book children's

'With a strong message of interconnectedness, hope and empowerment, This Small Blue Dot follows a little girl exploring the big and small things in life. From contemplating our place on this 'blue dot' to the best Italian, Chinese and Indian desserts, the book provides a broader, more inclusive view of who we are, where we come from and where our dreams may take us. Delivering big lessons with playful humour, the precocious young narrator shares her take on nature and the environment, wisdom from elders, broccoli, embracing difference and the power of imagination. This Small Blue Dot captures not only lessons on life but also the sense of fun and strangeness that comes with being a member of the human family on planet Earth.' (Publication summary)

Year: 2020

winner y separately published work icon Baby Business Jasmine Seymour , Jasmine Seymour (illustrator), Broome : Magabala Books , 2019 15602920 2019 single work picture book children's

'Baby Business tells the story of the baby smoking ceremony that welcomes baby to country. The smoke is a blessing – it will protect the baby and remind them that they belong. This beautiful ritual is recounted in a way young children will completely relate to.'

Source: Publisher's blurb.

Year: 2019

winner Daniel Gray-Barnett for 'Grandma Z'.

Works About this Award

The Picks of the Year Children's Book Council of Australia , 2012 single work column
— Appears in: The Canberra Times , 18 August 2012; (p. 22-23)
Edited version of the Children's Book Council of Australia, Children's Book Council Book of the Year Awards Judge's Report.
Spot-On Choices for Young Bookworms Stephanie Owen Reeder , Ronni Phillips , 2007 single work column
— Appears in: The Canberra Times , 18 August 2007; (p. 19)
Swashbuckling Sea Creatureson Book Short List Rosemary Sorensen , 2006 single work column
— Appears in: The Courier-Mail , 6 April 2006; (p. 20)
The Crichton Award 2005 single work column
— Appears in: Reading Time : The Journal of the Children's Book Council of Australia , August vol. 49 no. 3 2005; (p. 2)
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