60 pieces from well-known and new illustrators auctioned in aid of Action For Children.
In celebration of the 40th anniversary of David McKee’s classic picture book, Not Now, Bernard, Andersen Press has raised over £7,800 for charity partner Action For Children in its Inner Monster Illustration auction.
60 pieces based on Not Now, Bernard or the illustrators’ own inner monster were created and auctioned off, with pieces from David McKee himself. Household names such as Rob Biddulph, David Roberts, Sophy Henn and Lydia Monks raised the most money, while Axel Scheffler’s Gruffalo-themed monster raised an impressive £900 on its own.
Alongside these published illustrators, mentees on the Pop-Up Pathways Into Children’s Publishing – a two-year programme for illustrators from backgrounds which are underrepresented in children’s publishing – donated pieces and collectively raised £1,172 with their creations.
Andersen Press has partnered with Action For Children – the charity dedicated to making sure every child grows up safe and happy – on a new edition of Not Now, Bernard.
The new edition – which was released in June – includes notes explaining how reading with your child (and not ignoring them like Bernard’s mum and dad) can contribute towards their development and can help them thrive. Action For Children saw requests for its services skyrocket since lockdown in March, and continue through the COVID-19 pandemic.
“The reaction to the auction has blown us away – we never thought it would happen in the middle of a pandemic, but has enabled us to help our charity partner in a small way through a very tough, busy time,” said Paul Black, PR and brand director for Andersen Press. “We couldn’t have done it without the work of the incredible illustrators who got involved, created some unique pieces and raised those much-needed funds.”
As well as the charity auction, this autumn has seen a further range of Not Now, Bernard inspired clothing go on-sale at TruffleShuffle. A mini-me kids and adult t-shirt is now available featuring David McKee’s iconic artwork, joining the full range of adult clothing, tote bags and accessories that were released in the summer.
Want to read more news like this? Simply sign up to our daily digest by clicking here. You can also follow @LicensingSource on Twitter and @licensing_source on Instagram.
