UON creative wins prestigious fellowship
PhD candidate Stephanie Holm has been announced as the recipient of the prestigious Children’s Literature Fellowship from the State Library of Victoria.
Miss Holm, PhD candidate in the field of Natural History Illustration, will receive funding to develop a graphic novel exploring representations of Australian fauna and flora in early Australian children’s book publishing.
“I’m incredibly excited and elated to have this opportunity. Illustrating and books are two of my greatest interests, I’m thrilled they’ll come together in this fellowship,” she said.
The award carries a grant of $12,500, provides a workspace and special access to the library’s collections for 3 months research.
Miss Holm's research project is titled From curious creatures to bushland beasts.
“I’ll be looking at illustrated books, fictional texts and pedagogical works to see how Australian native flora and fauna species have been represented and characterised in early Australian children’s literature. I am interested in how Europeans responded to what would have been to them, a strange and alien land, filled with unfamiliar species.
“I’ll be looking at works by well-known authors including May Gibbs, but also less widely-known titles by Edward Sorensen, Amy Eleanor Mack and her zoologist husband Launcelot Harrison,” she said.
Stephanie Holm is also the author of the best selling Wildscapes: an Australian art therapy colouring book (Murdoch Books, 2015) and won the Newcastle Herald Short Story Competition in 2015.
She plans to share her fellowship journey through sketches and concept artwork on her social media platforms and website. You can follow her journey via Twitter & Instagram @ByStephanieHolm or Facebook Stephanie Holm Illustration.
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The University of Newcastle acknowledges the traditional custodians of the lands within our footprint areas: Awabakal, Darkinjung, Biripai, Worimi, Wonnarua, and Eora Nations. We also pay respect to the wisdom of our Elders past and present.