The winners in each of three categories of the 2026 Graphic Medicine International Collective Awards were announced on Saturday, July 25th, 2026, at the GMIC annual conference in Baltimore.
These awards are made possible by your donations and a generous matching gift in Honor of Nancy and Herbert Wolf. The matching gift is intended to honor and carry on Nancy and Herbert’s legacy of service and care. You can contribute to help match the grant for these awards by donating here.
The commemorative trophies this year were designed and built with Alex’s bottle design by Ben Sass of Handmade Studios in Sawyer, Michigan.
In the EDUCATIONAL category, the shortlisted works were:
- IT’S A JOURNEY: A Graphic Medicine Exploration of Endometriosis and Gender Diversity by Asiel (illustration, cover design, script) and Dr. M. Giacomozzi (script) from Treat it Queer and Spaghetti Publishing
- Pregnancy and Birth: A Graphic Guide by Laura Godfrey-Isaacs, Lilly Williams. Published by Icon Books
- Crash Cart by Ebony Toussaint (writer, creator), Robert Aultman (penciller, inker), Alexandria Batchelor (colorist), Jeremy Darby (letterer), Josh Jones (cover penciller, inker) from Hellcat Comics
- “Precipitated Withdrawal” art and story by Ryan Montoya, an excerpt from a graphic novel-in-progress.
- “Making it to the Registers: A Migrant Healthcare Worker’s Story” by Hugh Goldring, nicole marie burton, Marie-Andrée Jacob, Priyasha Saksena, Nasreen Ali, Amrita Limbu, Britzer Paul Vincent Paul Raj, and Rukia Saleem from White Rose Libraries; funded by AHRC (Arts & Humanities Research Council), University of Leeds.
And the winner is:
“It’s A Journey” by Asiel & M. Giacomozzi
The judges felt that:
“It’s a Journey” is a fascinating and informative work about endometriosis across gender diversity, and reproductive choices in queer-friendly clinical practice. The judges particularly liked the engaging, yet subtle, colour schemes and the use of a story thread throughout the work.
Asiel and M. Giacomozzi will share $600 US prize money and a commemorative trophy.
In the SHORT FORM Category, the shortlisted works were:
- BOLD Buddies Stories by Federico Muelas Romero, published by Blue Pug Books
- What Have We Lost? Infertility, Miscarriage, and Disenfranchised Grief by Shawn Forde, published by Graphic Medicine Review (a publication of UMass Medical School)
- The Anatomy of My Spine by Sydney Heifler, publication forthcoming in an anthology
- On Epilepsy: Between Seizure and Silence by Siyu (Anna) Li, self-published
- Emergency Room by Faye Harnest, self published
And the winner is:
“What Have We Lost?” by Shawn Forde
The judges stated that,
Shawn Forde demonstrates an excellent use of the comics language in this moving short form work. The judges particularly appreciated the repeating motif of dropping, or falling, or letting go.
Shawn will receive $600 US prize money and a commemorative trophy.
In the LONG FORM Category, the shortlisted works were:
- Precious Rubbish by Kayla E., published by Fantagraphics Books
- Toxic Tropics – A Horror Story of Environmental Injustice by Jessica Oublié (writer); Nicola Gobbi (art); Kathrine Avraam (color); and Vinciane Lebrun (photography) and Publisher from Street Noise Books. (Translated from French by Irene Vázquez)
- Call Me Emma: One Chinese Girl Finds Her Way in America by Makee, published by Street Noise Press
- Hello Sunshine by Keezy Young, published by LB Ink (an imprint of Little, Brown & Company.)
- This Might Surprise You: A Breast Cancer Story by Hayley Gullen, published by Green Tree (an imprint of Bloomsbury Publishing.)
And the winner is:
Hello Sunshine by Keezy Young
The judges were, quote,
blown away by the artwork and the sophistication of the storytelling which blurs the lines between mental illness and the supernatural. With best short form work last year, Keezy Young is obviously on a roll.
Keezy will receive $600 US prize money and a commemorative trophy.
