The MoCCA Arts Festival, or MoCCA Fest, is an independent comics showcase that typically includes artist booths, slide shows, and educational panels. It was created by the Museum of Comic and Cartoon Art in 2002 by bringing together over 2,000 artists, publishers, editors and enthusiasts. It was named "Best Small-Press Comics Nexus Anywhere" by The Village Voice. Beginning in 2013, the MoCCA Fest is being produced by the Society of Illustrators, following their acquisition of the Museum the previous year.
History
The MoCCA Festival was held at New York’s historic Puck Building from 2002–2008. The MoCCA Festival hosted the comics industry's 2004 and 2005 Harvey Awards. From 2009 to 2014, MoCCA Fest took place at the 69th Regiment Armory. The Society of Illustrators took over management of MoCCA Fest beginning with the 2013 show. In 2015, the event was split between two locations, with the exhibitors in Center548, and the programming at the High Line Hotel. Plans to convert Center548 to a residential property forced the Society to find new venues, and beginning in 2016 Metropolitan West hosted the exhibitors, with programming taking place at Ink48.
Presented to an artist whose outstanding work elevated the comic art form. In 2009, the MoCCA Festival Award was renamed the Klein Award in honor of MoCCA founder Lawrence Klein.
MoCCA Arts Festival Awards of Excellence (2013 - present)
Under the administration of The Society of Illustrators, the Klein Award was replaced in 2013 with the MoCCA Arts Festival Awards of Excellence, intended to recognize the most outstanding work on view at the festival. Artists winning this award are acknowledged with an Award of Excellence and have their work exhibited at the Museum of Comic and Cartoon Art at the Society of Illustrators. All materials chosen in the jury's initial survey will be acquired by Columbia University's Rare Book and Manuscript Library for a newly established MoCCA Arts Festival collection, to be expanded annually.
The winning artists' work was exhibited in the second floor MoCCA gallery at the Society of Illustrators May 21-July 6, 2013. Judges for the 2013 MoCCA Arts Festival Awards of Excellence included Karen Berger, Gary Groth, Nora Krug, David Mazzucchelli, and Paul Pope.
The winning artists' work was exhibited in the second floor MoCCA gallery at the Society of Illustrators April 29-May 17, 2014. Judges for the 2014 MoCCA Arts Festival Awards of Excellence included Gregory Benton, Tracy Hurren, Chip Kidd, Chris Pitzer, and James Sturm.
The winning artists' work was exhibited in the second floor MoCCA gallery at the Society of Illustrators July 27-August 15, 2015. Judges for the 2015 MoCCA Arts Festival Awards of Excellence included Charles Burns, Annie Koyama, David Plunkert, Andrea Tsurumi and Alexandra Zsigmond.
The winning artists' work was exhibited in the second floor MoCCA gallery at the Society of Illustrators May 3-June 4, 2016. Judges for the 2016 MoCCA Arts Festival Awards of Excellence included Calista Brill, Cliff Chiang, Charles Kochman, Mark Newgarden, and Lauren Weinstein.
