The ninth edition of Irudika, the International Professional Illustration Fair in the Basque Country organised by Euskal Irudigileak, will take place from 23 to 25 October at the Artium Museum in Vitoria-Gasteiz and will feature artists, publishers and agents travelling to the capital of Álava from all corners of the globe. Agents and artists will take part in the various round-table discussions, workshops, meetings and professional meetings which, as usual, are organised around three themes: Illustration, Publishing and Parallel Sectors. Forging links with the Basque Country, people will be arriving from Greece and Finland, as well as other countries such as France, Palestine, Ireland, Mexico, Uruguay, Germany, the Czech Republic and the United States.
Irudika is a window through which we can look out onto the world from the Basque Country, discover new trends, and invite others from abroad to take a perspective on what is happening here. Our main aim, therefore, is to forge connections between attendees and guests. Furthermore, Irudika is an event that promotes debate and critical thinking, and fosters a safe and respectful environment for work in illustration and its creative processes.
The programme for the International Professional Illustration Conference is organised into four areas: professional networking events, workshops, artist residencies and talks, spread across the three days of the Parallel Sectors, Publishing World and Illustration World sessions
With a total capacity of 125 people for in-person attendance, the event allows professionals who are unable to travel to participate online, featuring a virtual gallery of works and an intranet, as well as on-demand access to content in both the original and translated versions. For those unable to purchase tickets, all content is also broadcast freely on irudika.eus. Illustration professionals attend the event not only to learn but also to seek new opportunities through professional networking; however, members of the public or students who do not have an Illustrator Pass can also participate by purchasing day tickets offering access to the auditorium at a more affordable price.
Irudika is organised by the Professional Association of Illustrators of the Basque Country, Euskal Irudigileak, with the support of the Basque Government (Eusko Jaurlaritza), the Provincial Council of Álava, the Department of Economic Development, Employment, Trade and Tourism of Vitoria-Gasteiz City Council, the Spanish Ministry of Culture, the Programme for the Internationalisation of Spanish Culture (PICE) of Acción Cultural Española (AC/E), the Vital Fundazioa Foundation, the Czech Literary Centre – CzechLit, and the Artium Museum, amongst many other collaborating organisations.