Iranian illustrator Babakhan awarded at France’s Dracopolis
The jury of France’s Dracopolis International Illustration Competition awarded its special prize to Iranian illustrator Salimeh Babakhan for her cover design for the book ‘Dreams, whether far or near,’ the festival organizers said at the Salon Littéraire de l’Imaginaire in the southeastern city of Valence.
Babakhan, a Qom-based artist, secured the award after judges assessed submissions for artistic originality, execution quality, thematic alignment and emotional impact. Her illustration stood out for its cohesive visual narrative and inventive treatment of the competition’s theme, organizers said.
The annual contest forms part of the Dracopolis literary and visual arts festival, staged by the French cultural association Dragons Curieux. The event brings together writers, illustrators and visual artists from multiple countries, positioning Valence as a regional hub for speculative literature and fantasy-driven visual culture.
This year’s competition ran under the theme ‘Dreams and Realities,’ prompting participants to explore the boundary between the imagined and the tangible through traditional and digital techniques.
Babakhan’s winning work was created as a book cover, a format that jurors said sharpened the narrative discipline of the piece while preserving expressive range. The illustration’s layered composition and controlled color palette reinforced its conceptual clarity, aligning with the festival’s emphasis on visual storytelling within speculative genres.