Yesterday evening our shortlisted artists joined us at the V&A South Kensington for the happy occasion of the 2026 Award ceremony! The Judging Panel announced the winners and runners up and unveiled the two room, free, V&A Illustration Awards display, which is open from today until 4 October 2026.
Over the past few months our judges reviewed over 1600 entries, covering artwork from the period 2024 – 2025. Our winners draw on many sources of inspiration and demonstrate the versatility of illustration within experimental picture books, exhibition posters, 3D installations, animation, photo-collages and cover designs. Discover below the winners and runners up for our five Awards categories: Adult Factual, Adult Fiction, Advertising and Commercial, Illustration for Children and Emerging Illustrator.
Copyright of artists and publishers reserved.
Winner of Advertising and Commercial and the Moira Gemmill Illustrator of the Year
Annabel Wright, Views of Glasgow, A Window into Communities campaign (© Annabel Wright, Hunterian Art Gallery/Glasgow University, 2025)
Annabel Wright’s poster advertised a community-led art exhibition at The Hunterian Art Gallery exploring Glasgow’s past and present identity. The design was intended to attract people who would not normally visit the gallery. The artist layered different drawing styles to depict the variety of exhibits against a familiar Glasgow backdrop. A time-travelling robin — one of her characters from a storybook — leads a children’s protest towards a yarn-bombed bench. The artist painted the various elements of the design separately then combined them using collage.
Winner of Adult Factual
Julie Pereira, The International Criminal Court by Julie Pereira, Emmanuelle Michel and Jonathan Walter (© Julie Pereira, AFP, 2024)
Julie Pereira’s animation explains the work of the International Criminal Court. The court investigates and brings to trial individuals who commit or authorise acts of aggression against other countries and peoples, including war crimes and crimes against humanity. To convey this difficult subject matter, Pereira created simplified universal characters representing aggressor, judge and civilian. Our judges were impressed with how the animation communicated these concepts without being too literal or off putting and particularly praised the economical use of shape and symbolic forms to drive the narrative.
Winner of Adult Fiction
Stephen Smith, Cortázar Classics [Bestiary, The Winners, Hopscotch, 62: A Model Kit, A Manual for Manuel, Final Exam] by Julio Cortázar (© Stephen Smith, Vintage Classics, 2025)
Stephen Smith conjured up the surreal and playful nature of French Argentine novelist Julio Cortázar’s writing on the covers of six of the author’s ground-breaking works (first published 1951—86). The artist was asked to avoid pure abstraction in his artwork and included subtle figurative details to allude to some of the subject matter. The judging panel was impressed by how Smith’s designs worked together to create a cohesive visual identity for the series. Smith first developed his ideas in a sketchbook, then completed the designs using digital collage.
Winner of Illustration for Children
Baljinder Kaur, The Sleeper Train by Mick Jackson (© Baljinder Kaur, Walker Books 2025)
The Sleeper Train follows the story of a little girl travelling overnight through India with her family. Wide awake in the carriage, she journeys in her mind’s eye to places she has slept before. Baljinder Kaur drew on her own memories and experiences for the story, as much of her work explores and celebrates her global Sikh Panjabi identity. She created her vibrant illustrations using a hybrid process of sketching by hand using pencil, then adding colour digitally.
Winner of Emerging Illustrator
Vannysha Chang, Process (© Vannysha Chang, 2025)
Process tells the story of an afternoon spent making music with friends, inspired by Vannysha Chang’s teenage years in Java, Indonesia. Her paintings depict each step in the process of making a song, utilising square canvases and thoughtful composition suggestive of vinyl record covers. The artist wove in personal motifs and memories unique to her childhood. The judges were particularly impressed by her intuitive brushstrokes and use of colour, remarking on the nostalgic feel of the pieces.
Advertising and Commercial Runner Up
Mark Oliver, The FAMily Discovery Center installation (© Mark Oliver, The First Americans Museum, Oklahoma, 2025)
Adult Factual Runner Up
Anna Burel, Conceiving Histories: Trying for Pregnancy, Past and Presentby Isabel Davis (© Anna Burel, The MIT Press, 2025)
Adult Fiction Runner Up
Sarah Lippett, Everything Amplified by Sarah Lippett and Ziggy Hanaor (© Sarah Lippett, Cicada Books, 2025)
Illustration for Children Runner Up
Grace Easton, The House with the Little Red Door by Grace Easton (© Grace Easton, Thames and Hudson, 2025)
Emerging Illustrator Runner Up
Kaori Tokunaga, Boris and the Stolen Tomatoes (© Kaori Tokunaga 2025)
Informative about the background to the entries. Makes you want to find out more about the illustrators works.