Kike Ibáñez (September 6, 1980, San Sebastián, Basque Country) is a visual artist based in Madrid (Spain).
Career path
He trained as a graphic artist and graphic designer at the Escuela Nacional de Artes Gráficas Islas Filipinas (Madrid) and as an editorial illustrator at the Higher School of Professional Drawing, ESDIP (Madrid).
In the year 2000 he began to work in pre-press workshops and advertising agencies, scanning originals, layout of publications and photo retouching. Starting in 2006, he also carried out graphic design, drawing and illustration work. Among his employers, the Metro newspaper stands out, where it was common to see infographics and illustrations by Kike Ibáñez, a collaboration that ended in 2009 with the closing of the newspaper. For two years he designs illustrated books for children and adults at the Jaguar publishing house, this would be his last collaboration as an employee.
In 2012 he published his first illustrated book and since 2016 he has dedicated himself exclusively to illustrating from his studio in Madrid for publishers of school books and children's and youth literature (Anaya, SM and Santillana). His illustrations have been selected in the Catálogo Iberoamericano de ilustración (Mexico), in Ilustrarte – Bienal internacional de ilustração para a infância. (Portugal) and in the Little Hakka International Picture Book (China), in 2020 his work was chosen to be part of the La fiera del libro per ragazzi (Italy).
In March 2021 he moved his studio to the working-class neighborhood of Carabanchel in Madrid to carry out an artistic project called bIZI, a future exhibition made up of large-format paintings, interactive installations and objects created or intervened by the artist himself, with the fundamental idea of sharing the natural beauty of the bicycle and the act of using it.
Style
The personality of his work is influenced by his beginnings as a graphic designer. In Kike Ibáñez's work, color, composition, and subordination to the story that he wants to communicate are essential to build the image. The tone and arrangement of the elements in the image, in addition to harmonics, must have a narrative intention, because not only does the drawing speak to us, there is also information in the shapes, in the colors and in the way in which we combine them.
AWARDS
︎ 2020 – Basque Government Grant for the Graphic creation of illustrated albums
︎ 2020 – Selected for the Illustrator’s Exhibition of Bologna Children’s Book Fair
︎ 2019 – Awarded with two nominations at the 2nd Society of Illustrators Awards
︎ 2019 – Awarded with a Special Mention at the 10h IberoAmerican Catalog of Illustration
︎ 2018 – Selected on Little Hakka Internacional Picture Book Award
︎ 2018 – Selected on Ilustrarte, the Bienal Internacional de Ilustraçao para a Infância
︎ 2017 – Selected on the 8º IberoAmerican Catalog of Illustration
︎ 2016 – Winner of the Lazarillo Prize
︎ 2016 – Honorable mention at the 4th Francisco Pino experimental poetry contest
︎ 2015 – Winner of the the 8º International Encontro Ilustração of S. João da Madeira
SOLO EXHIBITIONS
︎ 2022 – MADRID DOS. Navel Art. Contemporary space. Madrid. Spain.
COLLECTIVE EXHIBITIONS
︎ 2022 – En roue libre. Lamis, Sarrant, Francia
︎ 2022 – Epic cycling. DuoYunXuan Art Center, Shanghai, China
︎ 2021 – Epic cycling. Narimasu Art Gallery – Itabashi Art Museum, Tokyo, Japan
︎ 2021 – Epic cycling. Otani Memorial Art Museum Nishinomiya, Hyogo, Japan
︎ 2021 – Epic cycling. Ishikawa Nanao Art Museum, Nanao, Japan
︎ 2021 – Epic cycling. Art Museum & Library, Ota, Japan
︎ 2021 – Epic cycling.. Yan-Huang Art Museum, Beijing, China
︎ 2020 – MADRID. Mad is Mad Gallery. Madrid. Spain
WRITTEN & ILLUSTRATED BOOKS
︎2021 – El secreto de Gino Bartali. Bang!
︎2016 – Jasón y los argonautas. Milrazones
ILLUSTRATED BOOKS
︎2023 – Diccionario de ciclismo. Planeta. Juanma Trueba
︎2023 – El misterioso caso del señor barrigón y la dama esquelética. SM. Jordi Sierra i Fabra
︎2023 – Escapistas. La torre de los secretos. Anaya. Ximo Cerdà
︎2022 – La misteriosa desaparición del pastel de chocolate. SM. Jordi Sierra i Fabra
︎2021 – Escapistas. La mansión del horror. Anaya. Ximo Cerdà
︎2020 – Escapistas. Un enigmático anuncio. Anaya. Ximo Cerdà
︎2020 – Escapistas. Campanilla secuestrada. Anaya. Ximo Cerdà
︎2020 – Abuelita Opalina. SM. María Puncel
︎2019 – Los escribidores de cartas. SM. Beatriz Osés
︎2018 – Migue hace un libro. Milrazones. Jesús Ortiz
︎2018 – Les aventures d'un ratolí de biblioteca. Crüilla. Salvador Comelles
︎2017 – Barrios de Colores. Milrazones. Ana González
︎2017 – Filomena Ficalapota. Crüilla. Maite Carranza
︎2016 – La cazadora de Indiana Jones. SM. Asun Balzola
︎2016 – Llueve. SM. Paloma Muiña
︎2016 – El baño de Cleopatra. Anaya. Ana Alonso
︎2015 – Cómo hacer trabajos increíbles con internet. Anaya. Ana Alonso
︎2014 – San Jorge y el Dragón. Jaguar. Eva Rodríguez
︎2012 – The Selfish Giant. Buhobooks. Oscar Wilde
︎ Pdf con el CV en español
Career path
He trained as a graphic artist and graphic designer at the Escuela Nacional de Artes Gráficas Islas Filipinas (Madrid) and as an editorial illustrator at the Higher School of Professional Drawing, ESDIP (Madrid).
In the year 2000 he began to work in pre-press workshops and advertising agencies, scanning originals, layout of publications and photo retouching. Starting in 2006, he also carried out graphic design, drawing and illustration work. Among his employers, the Metro newspaper stands out, where it was common to see infographics and illustrations by Kike Ibáñez, a collaboration that ended in 2009 with the closing of the newspaper. For two years he designs illustrated books for children and adults at the Jaguar publishing house, this would be his last collaboration as an employee.
In 2012 he published his first illustrated book and since 2016 he has dedicated himself exclusively to illustrating from his studio in Madrid for publishers of school books and children's and youth literature (Anaya, SM and Santillana). His illustrations have been selected in the Catálogo Iberoamericano de ilustración (Mexico), in Ilustrarte – Bienal internacional de ilustração para a infância. (Portugal) and in the Little Hakka International Picture Book (China), in 2020 his work was chosen to be part of the La fiera del libro per ragazzi (Italy).
In March 2021 he moved his studio to the working-class neighborhood of Carabanchel in Madrid to carry out an artistic project called bIZI, a future exhibition made up of large-format paintings, interactive installations and objects created or intervened by the artist himself, with the fundamental idea of sharing the natural beauty of the bicycle and the act of using it.
Style
The personality of his work is influenced by his beginnings as a graphic designer. In Kike Ibáñez's work, color, composition, and subordination to the story that he wants to communicate are essential to build the image. The tone and arrangement of the elements in the image, in addition to harmonics, must have a narrative intention, because not only does the drawing speak to us, there is also information in the shapes, in the colors and in the way in which we combine them.
AWARDS
︎ 2020 – Basque Government Grant for the Graphic creation of illustrated albums
︎ 2020 – Selected for the Illustrator’s Exhibition of Bologna Children’s Book Fair
︎ 2019 – Awarded with two nominations at the 2nd Society of Illustrators Awards
︎ 2019 – Awarded with a Special Mention at the 10h IberoAmerican Catalog of Illustration
︎ 2018 – Selected on Little Hakka Internacional Picture Book Award
︎ 2018 – Selected on Ilustrarte, the Bienal Internacional de Ilustraçao para a Infância
︎ 2017 – Selected on the 8º IberoAmerican Catalog of Illustration
︎ 2016 – Winner of the Lazarillo Prize
︎ 2016 – Honorable mention at the 4th Francisco Pino experimental poetry contest
︎ 2015 – Winner of the the 8º International Encontro Ilustração of S. João da Madeira
SOLO EXHIBITIONS
︎ 2022 – MADRID DOS. Navel Art. Contemporary space. Madrid. Spain.
COLLECTIVE EXHIBITIONS
︎ 2022 – En roue libre. Lamis, Sarrant, Francia
︎ 2022 – Epic cycling. DuoYunXuan Art Center, Shanghai, China
︎ 2021 – Epic cycling. Narimasu Art Gallery – Itabashi Art Museum, Tokyo, Japan
︎ 2021 – Epic cycling. Otani Memorial Art Museum Nishinomiya, Hyogo, Japan
︎ 2021 – Epic cycling. Ishikawa Nanao Art Museum, Nanao, Japan
︎ 2021 – Epic cycling. Art Museum & Library, Ota, Japan
︎ 2021 – Epic cycling.. Yan-Huang Art Museum, Beijing, China
︎ 2020 – MADRID. Mad is Mad Gallery. Madrid. Spain
WRITTEN & ILLUSTRATED BOOKS
︎2021 – El secreto de Gino Bartali. Bang!
︎2016 – Jasón y los argonautas. Milrazones
ILLUSTRATED BOOKS
︎2023 – Diccionario de ciclismo. Planeta. Juanma Trueba
︎2023 – El misterioso caso del señor barrigón y la dama esquelética. SM. Jordi Sierra i Fabra
︎2023 – Escapistas. La torre de los secretos. Anaya. Ximo Cerdà
︎2022 – La misteriosa desaparición del pastel de chocolate. SM. Jordi Sierra i Fabra
︎2021 – Escapistas. La mansión del horror. Anaya. Ximo Cerdà
︎2020 – Escapistas. Un enigmático anuncio. Anaya. Ximo Cerdà
︎2020 – Escapistas. Campanilla secuestrada. Anaya. Ximo Cerdà
︎2020 – Abuelita Opalina. SM. María Puncel
︎2019 – Los escribidores de cartas. SM. Beatriz Osés
︎2018 – Migue hace un libro. Milrazones. Jesús Ortiz
︎2018 – Les aventures d'un ratolí de biblioteca. Crüilla. Salvador Comelles
︎2017 – Barrios de Colores. Milrazones. Ana González
︎2017 – Filomena Ficalapota. Crüilla. Maite Carranza
︎2016 – La cazadora de Indiana Jones. SM. Asun Balzola
︎2016 – Llueve. SM. Paloma Muiña
︎2016 – El baño de Cleopatra. Anaya. Ana Alonso
︎2015 – Cómo hacer trabajos increíbles con internet. Anaya. Ana Alonso
︎2014 – San Jorge y el Dragón. Jaguar. Eva Rodríguez
︎2012 – The Selfish Giant. Buhobooks. Oscar Wilde
︎ Pdf con el CV en español
bIZI is an artistic project about the beauty of cycling. Bici is the short name for bicycle in Spanish. Bizi in Basque means to live. Basque is an isolated language that has its origin and is spoken mainly in the Basque Country, where the artist was born, a place that enjoys a high cycling tradition...
In March 2021 I moved to the working-class neighborhood of Carabanchel in Madrid to carry out the artistic project called bIZI, a future exhibition with large-format paintings, interactive installations and objects, with the fundamental idea of sharing the natural beauty of the bicycle and the act of using it.
More information can be found on the project website ︎ bIZI /// La belleza de montar en bicicleta
Catalina is smart. Very smart. Since ever. Her dream is to be a mystery writer, but she needs inspiration. And in his town nothing ever happens. Until the chocolate cake that Mrs. Herminia has made for the cake contest disappears. Will Catalina and her friends be able to follow the clues and find the thief?
︎2022 – El misterioso caso de la desaparición del pastel de chocolate. Published by SM. Written by Jordi Sierra i Fabra
ISBN 9788413923987 / 12x19cm / 120 color pages
Considered one of the last figures of epic cycling, the Italian athlete Gino Bartali united an Italy devastated by the fascism of Benito Mussolini, with vibrant victories in the main competitions, but behind this national symbol hid a hero with a well-kept secret...
A book published by Bang! ediciones (2021)
Written & Ilustrated by Kike Ibáñez
Charcoal & Oil on paper
20x26cm / 40 color pages
Spanish ISBN 9788418101809
Euskera ISBN 9788413714271
French ISBN 9788418101816
