In an interview with the French site 20 Minutes, Calvin and Hobbes creator Bill Watterson debuts the poster he designed for the 2015 Angoulême International Comics Festival, but he says he won't be attending the event.

Watterson was awarded the Grand Prix d'Angoulême last year, an honor that usually includes serving as president of the following year's festival. But in the interview, the reclusive cartoonist says he won't participate beyond designing the poster and sending some of his original art for an exhibit.

"To be honest, the world of festivals and their awards is very far from my daily concerns," he said. "But I'm still flattered that people continue to appreciate my work."

Watterson said he agreed to design the poster because he thought it would be an interesting challenge. He chose the comic-strip format to reference his own work, but he left out any dialogue to avoid the language barrier and thus make it more universal.

"Telling a story solely in images is one of the great strengths — and the great pleasures — that comics have to offer," he said. "In this way, I hope I have succeeded in expressing both my own work and comics in general. And to pay tribute to that which makes this medium so pleasant to read."