Winners of this year’s Tom Spur Gold Medal announced: Comics publisher and philanthropist Little Mountain Annie.
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Annie Koyama is the founder and publisher of alternative comics powerhouse Koyama Press, which was founded in 2007 in Toronto. Koyama Publishing not only supports its own creators, but also serves as a positive voice for the comics and cartoon art community.
Anne’s personal story is equally inspiring. After surviving a terminal brain aneurysm diagnosis, Anne chose to leave a successful career in the film and advertising industries and founded Koyama Press in 2007 to continue pursuing her passion for supporting and publishing emerging artists. Koyama Press’s works have been nominated for or won all major comics awards. In 2011, Little Mountain Press received the Joe Shuster Award for Outstanding Publisher. CXC found itself in good company as Annie received the Bob Clampett Humanitarian Award, Broken Frontier’s first Hall of Fame Award, and was awarded an Honorary Doctor of Letters by the Ontario University of Art and Design.
“Annie Koyama is a beacon for the independent comics community,” commented Caitlin McGurk, chair of the CXC Awards Committee. “Through her unwavering efforts to elevate the voices of a diverse network of cartoonists, she quickly established herself as a fairy godmother-like figure in the community, with impeccable taste. How Koyama has an impact on the life of a creator An example of excellence that makes a lasting impact, we are delighted to honor her with this award.
Although Little Mountain Press ceased operations in 2021, Anne Little Mountain continues to support artists by launching a grant program, Little Mountain Offers. These small grants support the projects of independent artists, often providing them with enough funds to allow the creator to complete a project or start a new one.
“I am delighted to have been selected as the 2024 Tom Spur Gold Medal winner,” Annie Koyama said in an email. “I am delighted to have found a way to stay connected to the community I love by directly supporting artists, especially was a cartoonist. Tom reached out to me early in my career in journalism when I seemed to come out of nowhere, and he continued to support the medium and my plans outside of the medium, for which I will always be grateful.
