Ignatz Awards

The Ignatz Awards are the festival prize of the Small Press Expo, the independent comics show held each September in suburban Maryland near Washington, D.C. First presented in 1997, they recognize outstanding small-press, self-published, and creator-owned comics, with an emphasis on work that stretches what comics can do as art and as personal expression. The award takes its name from Ignatz, the brick-throwing mouse in George Herriman's Krazy Kat, and the trophy itself is a brick.

A jury of five cartoonists picks the nominees, and the winners are decided by ballot. Categories include Outstanding Graphic Novel, Outstanding Artist, Outstanding Collection, Outstanding Anthology, Outstanding Comic, Outstanding Minicomic, Outstanding Online Comic, Outstanding Series, Outstanding Story, and Promising New Talent. Winners are announced at a ceremony on the Saturday evening of the festival. No awards were given in 2001, when the show was canceled after the September 11 attacks.

Comics and cartooning published during the June-to-May eligibility window, from minicomics and webcomics to graphic novels, with a focus on small-press, self-published, and creator-owned work.