INTERNATIONAL CARTOON CONTEST
GOLDEN HAT
Discover the 100 best cartoons from the world's oldest cartoon contest.
From all corners of the globe, cartoonists compete for the highest honor: the Golden Hat Grand Prize. Each year their entries offer a surprising look at the state of the world - often confrontational, sometimes touching, but always with a touch of humor. Because humor is precisely a powerful tool for breaking through tension and creating connection.
In times when free speech is under pressure, cartoons are more relevant than ever. What the Golden Hat participants show is clear: in a polarized world, it is vital that we continue to laugh - at each other, at ourselves, and even at that which divides us. Humor connects where words fall short.
The fact that the contest is still alive is evident from the impressive numbers: for the 2025 edition, no fewer than 601 participants from 65 countries submitted a total of 2535 cartoons for De Grote Prijs Knokke-Heist.
Accompanying the exhibition is the catalog Cartoons 2025, published by Lannoo. The book, with the 100 laureates of the Golden Hat, also contains information about the jury and the winners of the contest. Cartoonist Steve Michiels wrote the essay "Musing at the drawing board" especially for this edition.
The ten cartoonists nominated for Golden Hat 2025 are:
- Engin Selçuk from Turkey
- Gergely Bacsa from Hungary
- Sajad Rafeei from Iran
- Nora Van Huychem from Belgium
- Omar Zevallos Velarde from Peru
- Oleksiy Kustovsky from Ukraine
- Alejandro G. Becares 'Becs' from Argentina
- Holger Weyrauch from Germany
- Alexander Didenko from Russia
- Galym Boranbayev from Kazakhstan
Check out the ten nominated drawings below.
THE BEST BELGIAN CARTOONS
PRESS CARTOON BELGIUM
Join us in celebrating the 25th anniversary of Press Cartoon Belgium.
Every year, Press Cartoon Belgium selects the best political cartoons, published in the Belgian press. If you like cartoons on current affairs, drawn by the crème de la crème of journalistic cartoonists, the Cartoon Festival is the right place. A selection of the best cartoons of the past 25 years and the best cartoons of 2024 will be on display together in the exhibition this summer.
WHAT'S IN STORE?
Documentary '10 years of #jesuischarlie'
That cartoonists keep their finger on the current pulse, we know. But that their profession also involves risks is less well known. The VRT documentary '10 years #jesuischarlie' shows in a gripping way what - or not - has changed since the attack on the Charlie Hebdo editorial board.
The documentary can be viewed continuously during the Cartoon Festival.
ADDITIONAL ACTIVITIES
During the Cartoon Festival, there is a lot to do besides the expo itself. Meet your favorite cartoonist during a signing session and have your book personally signed. Feel like getting started yourself? Then join one of our drawing workshops and discover what you can create with pencil and eraser. While mom and dad explore the exhibition, kids can have fun with the Fly Search and in the cozy workshop area with adapted entertainment. And those who like to take home a souvenir can visit the cartoon shop.
