The Czech Republic’s International Festival of Illustration and Comics (LUSTR) took place from Sept. 21 to 26, marking the first-ever collaboration between the Cultural Division of the Taipei Representative Office in the Czech Republic and the festival organizers. The partnership invited three outstanding Taiwanese illustrators to exhibit their works at the festival and signed a memorandum of cooperation. This represents Taiwan’s first participation in this significant local Czech art festival, with the prospect of long-term engagement to enhance the international visibility of Taiwanese illustration in Central Europe.
The LUSTR festival is a landmark event in the Czech Republic, celebrating its 10th anniversary this year.
With support from the Ministry of Culture, this edition of LUSTR featured outstanding Taiwanese illustration works, showcasing representative pieces by illustrators Abei Liu (劉正堃), Austin Tzeng (丁原生), and Likuanzhen (李冠瑱). Additionally, Taipei Illustration Fair’s curator, Andy Yen (顏寧志), and its operations director, Char Chiang (蔣家立), were invited to conduct lectures and workshops in the Czech Republic. Drawing from their practical experience in organizing art festivals, they shared insights into Asian illustration market trends, introduced the development of Taiwanese illustration to the exhibiting audience, and engaged in discussions with organizers of other international art festivals. This allowed them to effectively build international networks and explore potential collaboration opportunities.
This Taiwan-Czech illustration exchange has paved the way for long-term cooperation. On Sept. 25, Taipei Illustration Fair and LUSTR Festival signed a memorandum of cooperation. Under this agreement, both festivals will recommend three illustrators annually to exhibit their works at each other’s festivals. This collaboration model aims to continually expose Central Europe to Taiwanese illustration and promote greater understanding of Taiwanese illustration in the Czech Republic in particular.
The Cultural Division of the Taipei Representative Office in the Czech Republic expressed that, in recent years, Taiwan and the Czech Republic have enjoyed close relations. Given Taiwan’s consistent success in international book fairs with illustration awards, this event serves as an opportunity to connect illustration professionals in Taiwan and the Czech Republic, raising the visibility and discussion surrounding Taiwanese visual arts in Central and Eastern Europe.