Dublin City Libraries and Core Creative celebrate 30 years of the Dublin Literary Award with striking digital out-of-home campaign honouring all 29 past winners
- Illustrated by Ciaran Moran and Emmet Mullins, each title is reimagined as a singular symbolic image
- Campaigns final artwork – the 30th illustration – will be unveiled on Thursday, 22nd May following the announcement of this year’s winner
Dublin City Libraries, in partnership with Core Creative, is marking a significant cultural milestone — 30 years of the Dublin Literary Award. Since its inception in 1996, the Award has championed exceptional international fiction, uniquely nominated by libraries across the globe. With a prize of €100,000, it continues to stand as one of the most prestigious and generous literary accolades globally.
To honour this anniversary, Core Creative has developed a striking digital out-of-home (DOOH) campaign that visualises each of the 29 previous winning titles through a series of bold, minimalist illustrations. Bought to life by illustrators Ciaran Moran and Emmet Mullins, each piece reimagines a novel as a singular, symbolic image that reimagines the story in a single frame. All 29 images can be viewed here.
“The Dublin Literary Award has always been about celebrating global storytelling and the power of libraries to connect readers with extraordinary literature. This campaign is a fitting tribute to the award’s legacy – creative, accessible and deeply thoughtful,” said Anne-Marie Kelly, Director, Dublin UNESCO City Of Literature, Dublin City Libraries.
“Right from the start, we wanted to keep things simple by using one colour palette and one smart idea that would say it all. So, we dove into the stories, picking out the strongest, most memorable symbols,” said Ciaran Moran, Core Creative.
The campaign’s final artwork — the 30th illustration — will be unveiled on Thursday, May 22nd, following the announcement of this year’s winner by the Award’s Patron, Lord Mayor of Dublin, Emma Blain. This event will be a highlight of the International Literature Festival Dublin (ILFD), supported by Dublin City Council.
Credits
Advertiser: Dublin City Libraries
Campaign title: Dublin Literary Awards 2025
Creative Director: Helena Jones
Art Direction/Illustration: Ciaran Moran, Emmet Mullins
Business Director: Jo Mullins
Managing Director: Dave Griffin
About Core
Core is Ireland’s largest Marketing Communications company. The company employs a team of 400 people and consists of nine practices – Creative, Data, Investment, Learning, Media (comprising of Spark Foundry, Starcom, and Zenith), Research, Sponsorship, Performance and Strategy.
