Catalog of 7th International Olive Cartoons Contest 2018 of Kyrenia Municipality, Cyprus

Received yesterday the recent catalog of the 7th International Olive Cartoons Contest 2018 of Kyrenia Municipality, Cyprus. It is published in February 2020 but mailed a year later possibly due to the Covid-19 pandemia which is no surprising in the New Normal. It is 20x21.5x2.5 cm in dimensions and has 280 full color pages plus the covers. 

In 2018, 348 cartoonists across 64 countries submitted 802 illustrations to the event. Compared to the preceding years, the rising proportion of participation, as Nidai Güngördü, the Mayor of Kyrenia Municipality, points out in his foreword, "shows us this: Cartoon Art knows no boundaries, despite all kinds of political interference we experience in North Cyprus, in Kyrenia, in Zeytinlik village".

And M. Serhan Gazioğlu, the President of Cypriot-Turkish Cartoonists Association, reminds in his introductory words that "as a result of this event, the Kyrenia district, the Municipality of Kyrenia, Cypriot Turkish Cartoon, the Olive, and the longing for peace in Cyprus has gained recognition on an international level and this is a great achievement for the Cypriot Turkish Community".

This weighty book perfectly covers the short bios plus cartoons or portraits and declarations of the jury members and prize-winners in both Turkish and English languages, snapshots of the jury meeting, the prize-giving ceremony and some touristic scenes from the historical town along with the winning and the many selected cartoons. There are also the special pages for the biographies and the work of the winners of the Gold Olive Outstanding Contribution Prizes 2018.

The cartoon on the front cover is by the Turkish artist Kevney Ensar Bahadır and the one on the back belongs to the Iranian cartoonist Ali Shabani. 

Thank you to the organisers of the International Olive Cartoons Contest for sending me this invaluable collection of cartoon art.