Background Information
The APA Pixie O’Harris Award for Distinguished and Dedicated Service to the Development and Reputation of Australian Children’s Books. Sponsored by HarperCollins Publishers Australia
Aims of the award:
- to recognise outstanding contributions made to Australian children’s books by people in the industry;
- to highlight the achievements of children’s book specialists;
- to raise the profile of children’s books and the people involved with them;
- to emphasise the importance of children’s books to the industry as a whole;
- to give due recognition to children’s books at the annual Book Industry Awards Dinner.
Eligibility for the award:
Nominations are accepted for publishers, editors, booksellers, publicists, etc, who have worked consistently in the field of children ' s literature, have demonstrated a commitment above and beyond the call of duty, and who have developed a reputation for their contribution to the industry. The nominee will have been working in children ' s books in Australia and will have a recognised standing in the field. Nominations should be accompanied by a citation on A4 paper, not more than two pages in length and should be signed by the nominator and a seconder.
Please Note: Previously unsuccessful nominations will be reconsidered. If you would like to nominate someone who has previously been nominated, please resubmit the nomination form including a citation.
Julie Watts with her Pixie O'Harris Award at the 2006 ABIAs. |
Recipients of the APA Pixie O'Harris Award:
2012 Ron McCarthy
2011 Elizabeth O’Donnell
2010 Tony Horgan
2009 Helen Chamberlin
2008 Kate Colley
2007 Agnes Nieuwenhuizen
2006 Julie Watts (pictured)
2005 Rosalind Price
2004 Leonie Sweeney
2003 Mark Macleod
2002 Rayma Turton
2001 Moira Robinson
2000 Ann Haddon & Ann James
1999 Joyce Oldmeadow
1998 Margaret Hamilton
1997 Barbara Ker Wilson
1996 Robin Morrow
1995 Pegi Williams
1994 Myra Lee
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Sponsor of the APA Pixie O'Harris Award
The APA Pixie O'Harris Award is sponsored by HarperCollins Publishers Australia. The recipient receives a prize of $500 as well as a certificate and a handmade glass plate mounted on a wooden plinth bearing the names of all winners. The plate is held by each recipient for one year.
Pixie O'Harris
The APA Pixie O'Harris Award honours one of Australia's best-loved illustrators of children's books.
Rhona Olive Harris was born in Wales in 1903 and wrote verses at an early age, and was surrounded and influenced by artistic people.
The family moved to Australia in 1920 and settled in Perth, but it was not long before Pixie was working in Sydney and studying at the Julian Ashton Art School. As well as producing a large |
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number of picture books of her own, she also illustrated the work of other writers and was a friend and mentor to many authors and illustrators.
In hospital in 1939 for the birth of her third daughter, she decided to use her talents to paint colourful fairy-style murals for children, to make their stay in hospital more pleasant. She went on to decorate over fifty children’s hospital wards, schools, day nurseries and baby clinics, for which she was awarded an MBE in 1976. She also received the Queen’s Coronation Medal in 1953 and the Queen’s Silver Jubilee Medal in 1977. Pixie O’Harris died on 17 November 1991. Her life’s work exemplifies the ideals of the APA Pixie O’Harris Award. |
