Mariann Máray’s art navigates the delicate interplay of human experience and social nuance, rooted in the cycles of nature, the quiet pulse of urban life, and the layered phenomena of community and diversity; distilled into wordless visual narratives, her work resonates across generations, speaking with equal depth to children and adults alike.
Mariann was born and raised in Budapest, Hungary, where she continues to live and work. She is a visual artist and author whose practice spans illustration, painting, and bookmaking, with or without words.
To date, she has illustrated more than thirty books. Her picture books have been published internationally, in languages ranging from Flemish to Korean.
Her work has been exhibited at major international venues, including the Illustrators Exhibition of the Bologna Children’s Book Fair in 2017, 2022, and 2026; the Silent Book Contest Exhibition at the Bologna Children’s Book Fair in 2019 and 2020; and the Chen Bochui Original Illustration Exhibition at the China Shanghai International Children’s Book Fair in 2020.
She is the recipient of numerous awards, among them the Bologna Illustration Award (2017, 2022, 2026), the Hungarian IBBY Prize (2025), the Compostela Prize (2019), and the Second Prize of the Chen Bochui Original Illustration Award (2020).
Over the past six years, she has devoted particular attention to the creation of silent books. She has authored five to date, including So It Goes, currently in competition for the 2026 Bologna Children’s Book Fair Illustration Award, and Unreachable, which received the HUBBY Prize in 2025 and was selected for the IBBY Honour List in 2026.
BOOKS & SILENT BOOKS
2026 Circle, (in competition)
2025 Így megy ez (So it goes), Csimota, Budapest
2024 Az a sok magányos ember (All the Lonely People), Csimota, Budapest
2024 Elérhetetlen (Unreachable), Csimota, Budapest
2026 While you are asleep, will be released this summer by Csimota), Budapest
2020 Mice Today, Dandelion, Beijing
2019 Milu’s Dog, Kaladraka Editora, Pontevedra
2017 Utazz bálnabusszal! Két Egér Könyvek, Budapest
2015 Állatok ábécéje, Scolar, Budapest
2014 The Abc Zoo, Scolar, Budapest
BOOKS AS AN ILLUSTRATOR ONLY (SELECTION)
2025 Szabó T. Anna: Neked hoztam, Magvető, Budapest
2023 Clarice Lispector: La Vida intima de la Laura, Club Editor, Barcelona
2018 Várszegi Adél: Gibbon és Makákó, Csimota, Budapest
2016 Aldous Huxley: A varjak és a csörgőkígyó (The Crows of Pearblossom), Két Egér Könyvek, Budapest
2015 Danny Bain: Ez nem az apu hangja. Betűtészta, Budakeszi
2014 Várszegi Adél: Raptormese, Kolibri, Budapest
2013 A Jakifészek, Scolar, Budapest
2012 Kismadár és Kóró, Scolar, Budapest
TOYS, BOARD GAMES DESIGN
2023 Djeco: Caponata Puzzle Gallery 350PCS puzzle, Paris
2024 Djeco: The Friends Cruise Silhoutte Puzzle, Paris
2024 Kibeszélő Board Game design, Tea Kiadó, Budapest
PUBLICATIONS
2021 Hogyan csináltam silent bookot? (Telling stories: How I made a silent book): a study from the book “Szöveg nélküli képkönyvek”. OPKM, Budapest
AWARDS AND HONOURS
2026 Selected for the IBBY Honour List for Elérhetetlen (Unreacheable)
2026 Bologna Illustrators Exhibition Award winner, for So it goes
2025 HUBBY (Hungarian IBBY) Prize, Illustration category
2022 Bologna Illustrators Exhibition Award winner, for Fruits and veggies
2021 Original Illustration Exhibition Chen Bochui International Children’s Literature Award,
2020. Dpictus The Unpublished Picturebook Showcase Selection for Mice Today
2020 Shortlisted for the International Silent Book Contest for All The Lonely People
2020 HUBBY (Hungarian IBBY) Special Prize, Illustration category
2019 Original Illustration Exhibition of Chen Bochui International Children’s Literature Award, Professional Group Second Prize, for Back to Nature
2019 Shortlisted for the International Silent Book Contest While you are asleep
2019 International Compostela Prize, for Milu’s Dog
2018 Original Illustration Exhibition of Chen Bochui International Children’s Literature Award,
2017 International Bologna Illustrators Exhibition Award winner for Travel with the Whale Bus
2016 Szép Magyar Könyv Díj (Hungarian Book of the year) for Ez nem az apu hangja
INTERNATIONAL EXHIBITIONS
2026 Bologna Illustratori Competition, Exhibition of the winning illustrations, Bologna
2022 Dpictus The Unpublished Picturebook Showcase at Bologna Children’s Book Fair
2022 Bologna Illustratori Competition, Exhibition of the winning illustrations, Bologna
2021 Original Illustration Exhibition Chen Bochui International Children’s Literature Award, Shanghaj
2021 BIB Illustration Biennale, Bratislava
2021 Billufeszt – The Budapest Illustration Biennale, MOME, Budapest
2019 The Silent Book Contest Finalists Exhibition at Bologna Children’s Book Fair
2019 Billufeszt – The Budapest Illustration Biennale MKE
2019 Arsenal Illustration Exhibition, Kyiv
2018 CCBF Illustration Exhibition, Beijing
2017 BIB Illustration Biennale, Bratislava
2017 Bologna Illustratori Competition, Exhibition of the winning illustrations, Bologna
2013 Tales from here and there. Tallinn, Estonia
2008 Helsinki Illustration Biennal. Helsinki
2008 Croatian Biennal of Illustration. Zagreb