2023 Ignatz Prize
The 2023 Ignatz Awards honor the best independent and small press comics. These awards have been held for 26 consecutive years and aim to recognize outstanding works in the comics industry. The winners were announced via live broadcast and live broadcast at the Mini Press Expo.
One of the standout winners was “The Wash Day Diary,” which won the Outstanding Story award. This is a graphic novel that celebrates the beauty and strength of black women and their relationships, including their hair. Another winner, Flowers of Death, tells the story of Nilofar and her late lover Sadie, and how gardening helped her cope with her grief. These awards highlight the creativity and diversity of the comics world, providing well-deserved recognition to talented artists and storytellers.
Overall, the 2023 Ignatz Awards recognize excellence in comics across categories ranging from anthologies to online comics. This is an important event for comics lovers and a platform for artists to showcase their unique and meaningful work to a wider audience.
Ignatz Prize winners list
- Outstanding Stories:
- Winner: The Wash Day Diary (Chapter: “Ride or Die”), Jamila Rowser and Robyn Smith (Chronicle Books)
- Excellent mini comics:
- Winner: Sacred Grove, Celine Loup (self-published)
- Excellent Collection:
- Winner: Boodle Fight, Ashley Topacio (self-published)
- Excellent anthology:
- Winner: “Shadows of Fear,” Allison O’Toole and Ashanti Fortson, editors. (railing press)
- Outstanding Series:
- Winner: The Story of Old Snake Creek, Drew Lerman (self-published)
- Excellent web comics:
- Winner: Opponent, Blue Delliquanti
- Promising new talent:
- Winner: Limbo, Deb JJ Lee (1st, 2nd)
- Excellent comics:
- Winner: Platonic Love, Aee Mi (Paradise Systems)
- Outstanding Graphic Novel:
- Winners: Mimosa, Archie Bongiovanni (Abrams Comics Art)
- Outstanding Artist:
- Winner: Darling and Her Other Names, Olivia Stephens (self-published)
- These are the winners of the 2023 Ignatz Awards in each category.
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Ignatz Award
The Ignatz Prize is a special award given to people who make really cool comics and drawings. These awards don’t apply to the big, famous comic books you might see in stores. Instead, they celebrate the creative work of small groups or individuals who make their own comics, and sometimes they also honor comics that are made by larger companies but remain owned by the creators.
The awards are named after the funny cartoon character Ignatz, who threw bricks in the Krazy Kat comic strip. The awards have been presented annually since 1997 at a large event called the Mini Press Expo, except one year when the event was canceled due to the September 11 attacks.
To decide who gets these awards, people who love comics and attend a mini-press expo can vote for their favorite comics. There is also a special panel of experts who select some of the best comics for nomination. These awards help celebrate the talented people who create comics that may not be as well-known, but are still pretty cool.
Ignatz Prize History
The Ignatz Prize has a long history! They’ve been handed out every year since 1997 at a cool event called the Mini Press Fair (except for 2001, which was canceled due to the tragic attacks of September 11th). These awards were established to recognize comics and drawings created by small groups or individuals. It’s a little different from the big, prestigious comics awards like the Eisner Awards, in that it focuses on comics created by one person who also writes and draws.
The name “Ignatz” comes from a funny comic character named Ignatz who liked to throw bricks. The awards were inspired by another event called the Orlando Convention, but they are no longer associated with it. The idea for these awards came from two guys, Chris Orr and cartoonist Ed Brubaker, who wanted to honor comics that were less famous but still super cool.
The Ignatz Awards have evolved over the years, with categories such as “Outstanding Artist” and “Outstanding Graphic Novel” to recognize different areas of the comics production community. These awards help shine a spotlight on creative and talented cartoonists who produce comics that may not appear on the shelves of big box stores but are beloved by many comics fans.
Ignatz Award Category
category |
describe |
|
Outstanding Artist |
Honoring outstanding comic book artists. |
|
Outstanding Anthology |
An anthology celebrating outstanding comics. |
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Outstanding collection |
Recognizing outstanding comic book collecting. |
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Outstanding Graphic Novel |
Highlighting excellent graphic novels. |
|
Excellent story |
Recognizing excellence in comic book storytelling. |
|
Promising new talent |
Honoring up-and-coming comics creators. |
|
Outstanding Series |
Celebrating an outstanding comic series. |
|
Excellent comics |
Recognizing outstanding individual comic books. |
|
Excellent mini comic |
Recognizing outstanding small-scale comics. |
|
Excellent web comics |
Highlighting the best comics published online. |
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