There were challenges, of course, and the language barrier was a major one. Most of the visitors were either too shy to communicate in English or didn’t speak the language at all. To adapt, some booths prepared general introduction notes and artist statements in Japanese. They also prepared printed translations for each book, attaching them directly on the covers like a book jacket. That was incredibly efficient—not just for communication, but for providing immediate context. Since most local visitors tend to be on the quieter side and prefer to experience the artwork without much verbal interaction at first, they just liked to pick up a book and read it by themselves. That’s why those translation notes made such a big difference. Visitors would usually only ask a question or two once they had already decided to make a purchase—perhaps serving as a polite buffer instead of jumping directly into the payment? I’m not sure, but that’s what I gathered from my observations throughout the fair.

One of my favourite new finds at the fair is Annabelle (Author is Kaori Koda, Published by Kissa Books, 2026). It’s a bilingual poetry book featuring beautifully simple graphic illustrations. I could grasp the playfulness of this lyrical tone instantly from the very first verse:

“knock, knock, knock, is anybody home?”
“I’m not ready.”

As the poetry goes on, more inner thoughts are revealed through a monologue by Annabelle (a variety of white hydrangea) and probably her playmate (a ginger cat), or someone else she’s having a conversation with. It pairs beautifully with the graphic-like images printed in Risograph.

I was initially drawn to the blue cover, where the white graphic elements are pressed to create a lovely contrast. I later learned that the images were originally created as paper-cuts by Kaori Koda. Because the book’s designer, Shun Sasaki (AYOND), is well known for his work with Risograph, the final book was delivered in this lovely textual form. The images add so much room for imagination to the text, almost like playing hide-and-seek—just like a sweet summer breeze lightening my heart in this hot weather.

I also picked up this playful riso-zine from ditto ditto , featuring “scary” foods from Hong Kong. Some are considered scary simply because their names sound intimidating, while others are genuinely scary—like “snake soup”, which is exactly what it sounds like: soup made from real snake.

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We also got the chance to visit Benrido in Kyoto, a printing company founded in 1887 that began specialising in collotype in 1905. We were very honoured to have Benrido exhibit their artwork last year as one of Bookery’s parallel exhibitions, and this year, we finally got to pay a visit and see the place where all the beautiful work is printed for ourselves. Ms. Shoko from Benrido was kind enough to give us a tour and guide us in making our own postcards using this technique.

Collotype is a traditional printing method first developed in France in 1855 as a way to better preserve photographs. It was later brought to Japan, and today, Benrido is one of the few places on Earth that still practices collotype and has the capacity to create full-colour images. Due to its rich colour pigments, the process leaves a very fine and delicate finish, which is excellent for showing intricate details in photography. Nowadays, the workshop takes on a variety of projects, collaborating with illustrators, photographers, and even manga franchises to expand their audience and preserve this one-of-a-kind technology.

I also got the chance to visit a few exhibitions in Kyoto, among which my favourite was Edward Gorey: A Secret Message Exhibition at the Museum EKi Kyoto. The venue is located inside a huge shopping mall adjacent to Kyoto Station, so I was expecting it to be a bit more commercialised, perhaps featuring heavy digital prints. To my surprise, the exhibition showcased Edward Gorey’s original drawings, ranging from his published and unpublished picture books to his commissioned posters and publications. While I wasn’t allowed to take photos inside, the content was so good that I bought the exhibition book, which includes most of the displayed items. His illustrations are mysterious, gothic, grim, and whimsical, but at the same time humorous and cute (to my taste)—a combination that fits my personal aesthetic perfectly.

To end this entry, here’re a few more yeasty finds from the trip (purely for showing off)!

Though it is burning hot outside, since lately I’ve taken a short course on B&W film developing led by photographer Rusty Fox, I am motivated to step outside and capture the cityscape. The other time I leave the house is at midnight, for my ongoing observational project Home Sweet Home, to sketch and document people in McDonald’s overnight. The previous two months have been occupied with school end terms and marking, back pain, and travel; my last memory of the project was still wearing down jackets during the winter. Time really flies! I think I almost have enough sketches for the project to turn it into a zine, but I just need to take some more time to make my decision.

Since my return from the Bologna BCBF, I’ve got an urge to redraw some of the pages for my developing picture book Bonaventure. Though I’ve had most of the pages done and even made a dummy for the book fair, somehow the feeling of lacking something made me want to take a break from the current method and seek an alternative. I’ve been arranging the page orders, tweaking some compositions, and trying new materials. And after several weeks of repeated drawings and experiments, I finally found my direction.

But now I’m in a new dilemma. Since my story revolves around two worlds—the dreamy backroom situation and reality—my original plan was to apply new mediums to the dreamy world so it would separate from the real world more deliberately for storytelling. But now I’m struggling with the blending of the new and old methods, and since I quite like the new results, I’m struggling with whether I should replace everything (which means abandoning two years of work and redrawing everything!). I don’t mind redrawing, but there are some pieces (not all) from the old pages I really love. It’s a painful choice: do I fully commit to the new style, or do I find a way for the old and new to live together?

I’ll take a break from the picture book since I’m heading to Japan tomorrow to attend Art Book Osaka this weekend. Maybe I’ll find new inspiration along the travel. June will be a busy month since some of my collaborations are getting back to me. Hopefully, my next update will bring updates about Bonaventure, more details from new collaborations, and good finds at Art Book Osaka!

Last but not least, I’m also part of the curating team of Bookery Art Book Fair in Macau. This year, our book fair will be from August 28th to 30th. We’re currently having an open call for exhibitors until July 26. Aside from the book fair, we also have talks and sharings, exhibitions, and workshops starting from July. If you’re in Asia and if you come across this entry by chance, come check out our event and maybe we can meet in Macau!

This year, my work, I got a pocket, a pocketful of Red Market, was selected for the BCBF Illustrators Exhibition. I traveled from Macau to Hong Kong, and then to Italy to attend the book fair.

On that first morning, I traveled from Pistoia to Bologna very early to get to the venue. It wasn’t a smart decision. Having to store and claim my baggage before and after the fair made an already exhausting first day even more tiring. However, the luggage storage place itself came highly recommended—a 24-hour spot inside a hotel very close to the central station.

For anyone who has never visited the fair, here are some tips and information I gathered. It’s not a fully professional guide, but think of it as a reminder to myself for the next time I go.

1. Travel & Accommodation

Bus travel can be nasty because everyone is trying to take the bus, meaning they are almost always full. Booking accommodation within walking distance might be a much better choice.

2. Event Tickets

BCBF puts together a brilliant program each year, ranging from masterclasses, panels, and workshops to portfolio reviews. They are free for everyone to join. However, for portfolio reviews, you need to sign up in advance—and I heard it’s incredibly difficult to secure a spot. I did my research, highlighting my preferences the night before boarding my flight. Upon my arrival in Milan, I found a café—cappuccino ready, laptop standing by—and just 30 seconds after the booking platform launched, everything was completely sold out, leaving my jaw dropped.

3. The Illustrators’ Walls

I totally forgot about the walls and didn’t bring anything big enough to display. My friend put up her work, but things on the wall tend to disappear very quickly. Still, it’s good to prepare something. It’s a classic tradition, and some people really do get work opportunities from it, so I guess it doesn’t hurt to try—as long as you keep it simple (an A4–A3 poster or something big enough to catch people’s attention).

4. Book Meetings in Advance (If not, keep trying at the fair!)

I prepared a portfolio, one dummy book, and one already-published book for the fair. I didn’t manage to book any successful meetings via email in advance, and wasn’t able to secure any through the public tickets either, except for the one arranged for me because I was one of the selected artists for the Illustrators Exhibition.

At the fair, I tried asking publishers if I could do a walk-in session, but most were fully booked and reluctant to take spontaneous meetings. But there are always exceptions:

• The Right Place, Right Time: I came across one publisher who was waiting for his next meeting. He agreed to look at my work and gave me great advice.

• The Power of Business Cards: You can always leave your business card. I actually got a spontaneous meeting from a card I handed in the previous day, which was a wonderful surprise. The publishers told me they could see an illustrator’s world view just from the small image on the card. Even though they didn’t find my work suitable for their publication after we talked, a small card can still make a big difference.

• Unexpected Collaborations: I got to meet a prospective writer who was interested in collaborating because she saw my work in the exhibition. We are currently continuing our discussions for the project, and I’m really looking forward to seeing how it evolves.

• The 2-Hour Queue: I also tried queuing for two hours for a quick three-minute portfolio review. Honestly, I would not recommend this. It is both time and energy-consuming, and I felt like you don’t really get useful feedback or real opportunities. When there are too many choices and too little time, it’s just not worth it. I’d rather spend that time queuing for workshops or seminars instead.

• The Underground Events: This last one I didn’t try myself, as I only found out about it at the very end of the book fair. The BCBF mobile app offers schedules for all kinds of events, including the “underground” ones ranging from booth book signings to independent portfolio reviews. I regret so much that I didn’t know this earlier—that’s why everyone else seemed to know exactly where the parties were!

Looking back, I can tell people to “stay open-minded” because you never know what will happen. But the truth is, the overall experience at the fair can feel quite defeating. Since you are only allowed one entrance per day, you have to pack everything you need, endure endless queuing and walking, face polite rejections one after another, and try to stay high-spirited for every encounter. Even though I was mentally prepared, I still found the whole thing overwhelming—especially when my chronic back pain hit every. single. minute.

What’s more, you see so much talent at the fair. Everyone is well-prepared, eloquent, and driven by confidence, all trying their best for a single opportunity. But what are the odds? You tell yourself to relax and enjoy the experience rather than expecting something in return, but that is always easier said than done. Especially when you know you’ve come all this way, crossing the world just to see the fair—of course you are expecting something. Even the slightest connection can be a comfort.

I couldn’t help but notice myself constantly trapped in this cycle of frustration. Even though my experience wasn’t as seamlessly exciting as most of the social media posts I came across, I did get the chance to connect with wonderful people, talk about each other’s work, and discover beautiful books.

Now when I recall it all, the emotions form a pattern just like a radio wave: whenever I felt down, I would come across something comforting, and the wave would go right back up. That is what kept me going. Plus, I got to try the signature bolognese tagliatelle, the orange potion (Aperol Spritz), and gelato—not so bad actually!

I’m not entirely sure how this place works yet, but I came across some articles on Substack and was very inspired by the creative, content-sharing atmosphere here. I’ve been wanting to keep track of my creative process in terms of writing, but it’s taking forever to happen. However, the format here really fits my imagination of what an online platform for deeper communication should be, which makes me want to give it a go too! Nothing big or promising, but I hope I can write something down at least once a month and see where it leads. I’ll be sharing my work updates, studio things, finds from art book fairs, and goodies I like.

Let me introduce a bit more about myself:

• Freelance illustrator & picturebook author

• Indie publisher (yes I publish my own books and photobooks from other artists) at Fizzy Ink Publishing

• I also curate art book fair at Bookery with my friends.

I enjoy what I do. But it’s never easy, as there is a lot of admin work aside from the creative part. And as for the creative part which I love—it’s a mixture of sweet and pain. Every day I struggle with my work; today I am happy with the result, and the next day I doubt it and redraw. I guess that’s the reason I want to write things down. We all need something to help us see where we are on this journey, to better navigate what’s coming up next.

Above image is one of my recent work I got a pocket, a pocketful of red market. It’s a community zine I was commissioned to create about the local Red Market. It got me selected for the BCBF 2026 Illustrators Exhibition—I’m very honoured, and I got to travel to Bologna last April. So, I guess my next journal entry will be all about that journey.