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2025 LIBRIS AWARDS: THE AUSTRALIAN ARTISTS’ BOOK PRIZE

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Held biennially by Artspace Mackay the Libris Awards brings together artist book works by leading and emerging makers from across Australia. The awards celebrate the artform by providing a snapshot of the discipline at a particular time and place. Of the hundreds of submissions received this year 60 finalists were selected to compete for three award categories:

CATEGORY 1  –  Daly Bay National Artists Book Award (acquisitive)
…………………–  Daly Bay National Artists Book Award, Highly Commended (acquisitive)

CATEGORY 2 – Cathy Knezevic Regional Artists Book Award (acquisitive)

CATEGORY 3 – Tertiary Artists Book Prize – an invitational award (acquisitive)

Award winning artists books are acquisitive and each Awards event build on the gallery’s nationally significant artist book collection.

ABOUT THE JUDGES (From the Awards website)

The 2025 Guest Judges were MARIAN MACKEN is a writer, researcher, educator, and artist trained in architecture, landscape architecture and visual art, and is currently Associate Professor at Te Pare School of Architecture and Planning, Waipapa Taumata Rau University of Auckland, New Zealand.

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ANA ESTRADA is a Brisbane-based socially engaged artist working in healthcare, exploring how art can be used to create safe spaces for dialogue. Her practice involves storytelling, photography, poetry, bookmaking, and, more recently, performance, all of which serve as crucial tools for voicing the experiences of aged care workers and residents.

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The Cooper+Spowart entry in this year’s Awards was our book Being Present: Eight Acts which was recently presented in a framed format in the Wangaratta Performing Arts Gallery.

Our artist’s statement was:

Walking is integral to our creative practice and being present in everyday life. These journeys, both physical and psychological, are not driven by the necessity to arrive at a determined end point but to meander and be aware of the possibilities in each step. Walking and Being Present also refers to the concept creation in, and performative actions of material thinking in the making of our book works.

Through a combination of materials and book forms, ‘Being Present: Eight Acts’ invites the reader to enter each scene and join us on a slow walk through time, space and considerations of ‘being in the world’.

We were excited to be advised that the book was judged as ‘Highly Commended’ by the judges and acquired for the Artspace Mackay Collection. While unable to attend the Award presentation event we forwarded the following words that were read by Gallery Director Tracey Heathwood.

We are deeply honoured to receive the Daly Bay Highly Commended Award in this prestigious exhibition and award. The Libris Awards is an important event to the artist book community, and we are thrilled with the knowledge that our book will now be included in the highly acclaimed Artspace Mackay artists book collection.

‘Being Present: Eight Acts’ evolved over many months of deep questioning and material thinking. The concept of walking and performance through both the physical and psychological space of the book is deeply embedded in both the making and reading of this book. It is an invitation the reader to enter each scene and join us on a slow walk-through time, space and an awareness of being in the world.

We wish to thank the sponsors Daly Bay for their support and the continued commitment that Artspace Mackay makes to the artists book community. We also wish to thank the Judges who we have taken care and time to connect with all the amazing books that have been presented to them for this award.

Thank you

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THE 2025 AWARD WINNERS

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CATEGORY 1

WINNER Daly Bay National Artists Book Award (acquisitive)

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Jude TAGGART ROBERTS Less than 2 degrees  2025

Drawing, relief print on Hosho with paperclay, 160.0 x 46.0 x 4.0cm (open).

Images courtesy of the artist and Artspace Mackay

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HIGHLY COMMENDED Daly Bay National Artists Book Award  (acquisitive)

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Victoria COOPER and Doug SPOWART  Being Present: Eight Acts  2024

Pigmented inks on photographic and art papers, edition of 3 + 1 AP, 31.0 x 22.0 x 3.5 cm

Images courtesy of the artists and Artspace Mackay

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CATEGORY 2

Cathy Knezevic Regional Artists Book Award (acquisitive)

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Karen HURFORD and Natalie FIELD  The Little Bird Compendium 2025

Mixed media, 19 x 27.0 x 13.0 cm. Images courtesy of the artists and Artspace Mackay

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CATEGORY 3

Tertiary Artists Book Prize – An invitational award (acquisitive)

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Megan KENNEDY  Hold Hands Spring Tide  2025

Mixed media, 20.0 x 22.0 x 4.0 cm (closed), 20.0 x 44.5 cm dimensions variable (open).

Images courtesy of the artist and Artspace Mackay

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The 2025 Libris Award: The Australian Artists’ Book Prize exhibition will be on display at Artspace Mackay until the 14th of September.

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READ MORE ABOUT OUR BEING PRESENT BOOK AND EXHIBITION: BEING PRESENT WOTWEDID BLOG POST 2024

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DOWNLOAD AN ILLUSTRATED CATALOGUE HERE: 2025 Libris Finalists Catalogue

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FURTHER INFORMATION ABOUT THE AWARD:  THE LIBRIS WEBSITE

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