THE ILLUSTRATOR and writer Lauren Child is to visit schools across Scotland from 25 to 29 March.

The creator of the Charlie and Lola series, which then became a popular cartoon, is visit 30 schools in Edinburgh, Perth and Kinross, Stirling, Glasgow and Falkirk.

The Children’s Book Tour is supported by Scottish Friendly and organised by Scottish Book Trust.

Ms Child has been awarded an MBE for her work and was appointed as an Artist for Peace by Unesco in 2008.

She has sold more than 3m books in 19 countries and is also the Waterstones Children’s Laureate.

She said: "I am so happy to be returning to Scotland. Chatting to children and teachers is such a joyful experience.

"Live events are a good opportunity to get children excited about reading words and pictures, and thinking about creating their own stories and illustrations.”

Marc Lambert, chief executive of Scottish Book Trust, said: "It’s an honour to host Lauren Child as part of the Scottish Friendly Children’s Book Tour.

"Her illustrations are a household favourite for children and their parents, and we’re sure schools across Scotland will be thrilled to learn how her stories come to life."

www.scottishbooktrust.com

THE artist Paul Bennett is to have a new exhibition at the Tighnabruaich Gallery in Argyll.

The Light and the Darkness: Seascape and Landscape Painting will run from 30 March to 14 April.

The paintings are inspired by the wilds of Western Scotland and Skye.

He said: "I want my paintings to tease out more than the eye can see, to draw people in and invite them to experience – not just consume – an image."

The gallery said: "The seascape and landscape paintings created are inspired by memory and experience and are developed using artistic intuition.

"They are not tied into any specific region or time, they are an eclectic synthesis of place, weather and season.

"Paul chooses to capture and communicate the experience this way as it reflects life with its unceasing process of observing, experiencing, interpreting, storing – and ultimately – reflecting."

Tighnabruaich Gallery is in the village of Tighnabruaich, two hours west of Glasgow.

www.tiggallery.com

THE award-winners at the 12th annual Glasgow Short Film Festival have been announced.

The winners of the prestigious Bill Douglas Award for International Short Film and Scottish Short Film Award have been revealed, along with the festival audience’s selection of their own favourite shorts.

The 2019 Bill Douglas Award went to Liminality & Communitas by Finnish director Laura Rantanen.

The Scottish Short Film Award went to Mum’s Cards by Glasgow artist, filmmaker and musician Luke Fowler.

The film explores the life of Fowler'’s mother, a sociology lecturer at Glasgow University since the 1960s.

The Audience Awards, given to the International and Scottish Shorts with the highest votes from the festival audience, went to Rishi Chandna’s Tungrus (International), a documentary observing a week in the lives of a middle-class household in Mumbai.

Matt Lloyd, director of the Glasgow Short Film Festival said: “I’m delighted to see such bold choices from our juries. Both winning films play with form and narrative, tackling vast subjects obliquely through a seemingly small focus.

"The special mentions indicate great talents in the making; we can’t wait to see what they will do next. And it’s an indication of the importance of Hannah Currie’s We Are All Here that the film received nods from both the jury and the audience. This is a vital film addressing mental health stigma amongst young Scottish men."

www.glasgowfilm.org