Biography

Jiri Tibor Novak 1947 - 2022

Born in 1947, in Czechia, he arrived in Australia in 1970. After later  travelling extensively in Europe, Canada and the U.K. he returned to Australia and settled in Airey's Inlet.

Awards and international exhibitions
Unesco / Noma Concours, Fish and Bird, commended, 1982
Biennale of Illustrations Bratislava (BIB), Fish and Bird, 1983
Biennale of Illustrations Bratislava (BIB), Christopher, 1989
Inaugural International Illustrators Exhibition, Tokyo, guest speaker, One Big Yo To Go, 1985
Biennale of Illustrations, Seoul, The Hobyars, Jacaranda Wiley, 1987
Premi Catalonia d'il-lustracio, The Bear with Bad Eyes, 1988
Bologna Children’s Book Fair exhibitions
Religious Book of the Year, Inigo, with Michael Hansen, 1991
Australia Post Bookabout, Best seller 7-9 year-olds (1995); Best overall seller (1996), Crocoroos and Kangadiles, Galley Club Award for Best Produced Children’s Book in its category, Crocoroos and Kangadiles
Wilderness, first price for illustrations in Blotsville by Mary Steele, 2003
Excellence Award, Geelong Advertiser, for artist in residence program, Lara Primary School, 1995
Australia Council Grant, 1997

Group and individual exhibitions
Oz Gallery, Melbourne (group show)
Heyday Gallery, Prahran (solo shows)
Wiregrass Gallery, Eltham (solo shows)
La Perouse Gallery, Canberra (solo shows)
Australia Post Gallery, Holiday Stories Exhibition (illustrations)
Books Illustrated Gallery, Port Melbourne (retrospective exhibition of illustrations, 1994; Matchbox Exhibition, 1994)
Qdos Art Gallery, Lorne (group shows, 1994, 1995, 1996, 1998, 2000)
Geelong Art Gallery (illustrations, Children’s Book Week, 1996)
Geelong College (illustrations, group show, 1997)
Fringe, The Box (group show, Melbourne and touring Australia, 1998)
Customs House Gallery, Warrnambool, (Children’s Book Illustrators, group, 1998)
Whole Foods Cafe, Geelong (solo show)
Ryrie Street Gallery, Geelong (solo show, reviews attached)
National Gallery, Melbourne, The Cask (group show, 1998)
Calendar exhibition (included in Shire calendar, Torquay, 1998)
The Ladder (group show, Victoria Vista Hotel and touring, 1998)
Momenta, The Whole Foods Coffee, Geelong (group show, 1999)
Picture Book Families, Dromkeen, Riddells Creek (group show, 1999)
Solidni Jistota Gallery, Prague, Czech Republic (solo show 2000)
Calendar exhibition, Torquay (group show, 2001)
ErPet Gallery, Prague, Czech Republic (solo show, 2001)
Brougham Art School Gallery, Geelong (group show, 2002)
Fitzroy Street Gallery, Fitzroy (solo shows, 2000, 2001, 2002)
red gallery, Melbourne (solo show, 2002)
Scammelles Restaurant, Leaves, boxes (group show, 2003)
Eagle Nest Gallery, Aireys Inlet (solo show of illustrations, 2003)
Gelong Gallery, Geelong (solo show) to be held in July 2003
Ryrie Street Gallery, Geelong (group show) September 2005
ErPet Gallery, Prague, Czech Republic, January 2006
Little Malop Street, Geelong (group show) 2006

Collections
La Trobe University, Melbourne
Australian National University, Canberra
Phillip Institute of Technology, Melbourne
Books Illustrated Gallery and Collection
Dromkeen Children Book Collection

Private collections
Australia, Czech Republic, England, Japan, Singapore

Graphics and illustrations for adults
Illustrations and covers for Overland literary magazine since 1970s
Illustrations for other magazines and journals such as Australian Society, Editions, Island, etc.
Logo design for Little Malop Street: The Art and Cafe Precinct of Geelong
Portfolio of etchings honouring Stephen Murray Smith of Overland, Port Jackson Press

Publications
Books (text and illustrations)
Fish and Bird (for children), Oxford University Press
The Bird Man (for children), Mark McLeod Random House
How to Make Mobiles (for children), Allen & Unwin
Great Ocean Walk (for children), Lothian

Artists books, portfolios
Etching portfolio in honour of Stephen Murray Smith for Overland, with Arthur Boyd, Clifton Pugh, Rick Amor, Michael Leunig, etc., Port Jackson Press
Christopher, Kris Hemensley, Swamp
The Pig Farmer, Nan McNab, Swamp
Boats, Alex Selenitsch, Swamp
Vienna, Jiri Tibor Novak, Nosukumo
The Cities, etching portfolio, Swamp
sore/eros portfolio with visual poems by Alex Selenitsch, Swamp
Represented at Port Jackson Press, The Print Guild, La Trobe collection

Books (illustrations for other writers’ texts)
One Big Yo to Go (for children), Oxford University Press
The Bear with Bad Eyes (for children), Angus & Robertson
Inigo (for children), Michael Hansen, David Lovell Publishing
Puffy (for children), Anne Marie Rolley, Mark McLeod Random House
With One Hour to Spare (for children), Judith Womersley, Macmillan
The Square Book, The Triangle Book, The Circle Book, The Star Book (for children), Nan McNab, Allan Cornwell
Mondays Child, Old MacDonald, Insy Wincy Spider, The Old Woman who Swallowed a Fly [Rainbow series] (for children), traditional texts, Allan Cornwell
Crocoroos and Kangadiles (for children), Nan McNab, Allan Cornwell
Buchanauts and Aquaneers (for children), Nan McNab, Allan Cornwell
You Can Make Mobiles (for children), Allen & Unwin
When the buffalo wakes (for children), Penelope Johnston, Roland Harvey Books
Box of Chicks, James Molony, Penguin, 2002
Blotsville, Mary Steele, Hyland House, 2002

Numerous books in reading schemes for Jacaranda Wiley, Pearson Education, Nelson, Macmillan, Lands End, etc., as well as educational books for a wide range of publishers

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