2015 Ignatz Award Nominees Announced

The Small Press Expo is almost upon us, which means it's time to learn about a slew of talented folks you probably knew little to nothing about beforehand. And that's what makes comics so great--the fact that there are so many talented individuals out there vying for your attention. Also tied to the show is the Ignatz Awards and the 2015 show is shaping up to offer a lot of great nominees. The nominees for the ballot were determined by a panel of five of the best of today’s comic artists, Lamar Abrams, Cara Bean, Robyn Chapman, Sophie Goldstein and Corrine Mucha, with the votes cast for the awards by the attendees during SPX. The Ignatz Awards will be presented at the gala Ignatz Awards ceremony held on Saturday, September 19, 2015 at 9:30 PM.

The Ignatz, named after George Herriman's brick-wielding mouse from his long running comic strip Krazy Kat, recognizes exceptional work that challenges popular notions of what comics can achieve, both as an art form and as a means of personal expression. The Ignatz Awards are a festival prize, the first of such in the United States comic book industry. The full 2015 nominee list can be found here. SPX will be held Saturday, September 19 from 11AM to 7PM and Sunday, September 20, noon-6PM at The North Bethesda Marriott Convention Center in Bethesda, Maryland. Admission is $15 for Saturday, $10 for Sunday and $20 for both days.

Full press release and list of nominees below.

2015 IGNATZ AWARD NOMINEES Bethesda, Maryland; August 18, 2015 Media Release ­—  The Small Press Expo (SPX), the preeminent showcase for the exhibition of independent comics, graphic novels and alternative political cartoons, is pleased to announce the 2015 nominees for the annual presentation of the Ignatz Awards, a celebration of outstanding achievement in comics and cartooning. The Ignatz, named after George Herriman's brick-wielding mouse from his long running comic strip Krazy Kat, recognizes exceptional work that challenges popular notions of what comics can achieve, both as an art form and as a means of personal expression. The Ignatz Awards are a festival prize, the first of such in the United States comic book industry. The nominees for the ballot were determined by a panel of five of the best of today’s comic artists, Lamar Abrams, Cara Bean, Robyn Chapman, Sophie Goldstein and Corrine Mucha, with the votes cast for the awards by the attendees during SPX. The Ignatz Awards will be presented at the gala Ignatz Awards ceremony held on Saturday, September 19, 2015 at 9:30 P.M. Additional information on the nominees and previews (as available) can be found at www.spxpo.com/spx-2015-ignatz-nominees. Once again we want to thank our our friends at comiXology for sponsoring the Ignatz Awards. Information on comiXology and their self-publishing portal Submit can be found at https://submit.comixology.com. The 2015 Ignatz Award Nominees Outstanding Artist Emily Carroll - Through The Woods Ed Luce - Wuvable Oaf Roman Muradov - (In a Sense) Lost and Found Jillian Tamaki - SuperMutant Magic Academy Noah Van Sciver - Saint Cole  Outstanding Anthology or Collection Drawn and Quarterly, 25 Years of Contemporary Cartooning, Comics, and Graphic Novels, edited by Tom Devlin, Chris Oliveros, Peggy Burns, Tracy Hurren, and Julia Pohl-Miranda An Entity Observes All Things by Box Brown How To Be Happy by Eleanor Davis Pope Hats #4 by Ethan Rilly SuperMutant Magic Academy by Jillian Tamaki Outstanding Graphic Novel Beauty by Kerascoët and Hubert The Oven by Sophie Goldstein Rav by Mickey Zacchilli Saint Cole by Noah Van Sciver Wendy by Walter Scott Outstanding Story Doctors by Dash Shaw "Me As a Baby" from Lose #6 by Michael DeForge  "Nature Lessons” from The Late Child and Other Animals by Marguerite Van Cook and James Romberger  "Sex Coven" from Frontier #7 by Jillian Tamaki Weeping Flower, Grows in Darkness by Kris Mukai Promising New Talent M. Dean - K.M. & R.P. & MCMLXXI (1971) Sophia Foster-Dimino - Sphincter; Sex Fantasy Dakota McFadzean - Don't Get Eaten by Anything Jane Mai - Soft Gina Wynbrandt - Big Pussy Outstanding Series Dumb by Georgia Webber Frontier edited by Ryan Sands March by John Lewis, Andrew Aydin and Nate Powell Pope Hats by Ethan Rilly Sex Fantasy by Sophia Foster-Dimino Outstanding Comic Borb by Jason Little The Nature of Nature by Disa Wallander The Oven by Sophie Goldstein Pope Hats #4 by Ethan Rilly Weeping Flower, Grows in Darkness by Kris Mukai Outstanding Minicomic Devil's Slice of Life by Patrick Crotty Epoxy 5 by John Pham King Cat #75 by John Porcellino Sex Fantasy #4 by Sophia Foster-Dimino Whalen: A Reckoning by Audry Outstanding Online Comic The Bloody Footprint by Lilli Carre Carriers by Lauren Weinstein  Mom Body by Rebecca Roher O Human Star by Blue Delliquanti Witchy by Ariel Ries SPX will be held Saturday, September 19 from 11AM to 7PM and Sunday, September 20, noon-6PM at The North Bethesda Marriott Convention Center in Bethesda, Maryland. Admission is $15 for Saturday, $10 for Sunday and $20 for both days. For further information on the Ignatz Awards, the nominees or to request an interview, please contact Ignatz Awards coordinator, Eden Miller, at spxignatz@gmail.com or SPX executive director, Warren Bernard at warren@spxpo.com.  For more information on the Small Press Expo, please visit http://www.spxpo.com. Once again we want to thank our our friends at comiXology for sponsoring the Ignatz Awards. Information on comiXology and their self-publishing portal Submit can be found at https://submit.comixology.com. This year's image of Ignatz, as seen above, was created by 2014 Promising New Talent Winner Cathy G. Johnson.