Lené Ehlers (honourable mention

THE TROMBONE PLAYER FROM VIENNA

THE TROMBONE PLAYER FROM VIENNA

Lené Ehlers

Franz is a professional trombone player in Vienna. He is the best trombone player, and all the orchestras want him to play in their concerts. Franz knows he is the best and often thinks of himself as a genius.

But one night, after a show, something comes over him. He just can’t stop playing the trombone, no matter how hard he tries. He takes to the streets in search of help, but wherever he goes, people enjoy his talent and think he is a street artist. The more he tries to explain, the faster the notes flow from his trombone and people get so excited, they start dancing in the street! Franz drives through the streets of Vienna on his Vespa, searching for a way to get rid of the curse.

When the clock strikes midnight, Franz accepts that he won’t find any help. He parks his Vespa on a little square and decides to perform a show all by himself. ‘I might as well!’ he thinks.

What happens next, is incredible…

LENÉ EHLERS is a creative living in Cape Town. She studied graphic design and completed a post-graduate programme in Illustration. She then broadened her creative practice by becoming a florist as well. Her Illustrations have taken her internationally to the Bologna Children’s Book Fair in Italy, where her work was part of a prestigious worldwide traveling exhibition. Her illustration style is bold, playful and individualistic. Her use of colour is striking and her creative process consists of always surprising herself by what happens on the blank page. She uses mixed media like oil paint, acrylic, gouache, ink, pencils and collage to create her unique pieces. Humour and playfulness are important themes in her work.

JURY REPORT Lené Ehlers’s illustrations are refreshingly different to what one is used to seeing in a picture book competition. She works in a bold and individualistic way that is original and catches the eye. Her way of composition and colour-use shows her self-confidence. The hand-written text works well with this out-of-the-box style. The jury would have loved to see more of a close-up of her main character, as one tends to identify better with a character you know more about. It will also help children to enjoy the book more if one can come closer to what is happening, and not only feel like an onlooker from a distance.