the fun of zines
Many artists are interested in the idea of creating small, easily publishable booklets containing their art. One of the simplest and cheapest ways to get your art out there is through the creation of a ‘zine, a kind of publication with a long and interesting history.
You may hear of ‘zines in various places. You may have read a few, maybe even without knowing what they are. Making a ‘zine is not only a fun past-time, but also has it’s place in art, as well as politics, activism, and cultural history.
Although the first ‘zines were made arguably around from the 1930s, the idea of publishing small runs of booklets or leaflets has been a practice around for centuries, ever since the invention of the printing press and maybe even before.
The ‘pamphlet wars’ of the 1600s and early 1700s saw the publishing of over 2000 pamphlets discussing religious and later political points of view. This continued into the 1800s, adding social newsletters (such as Lady Whistledown’s on Bridgerton!) into the mix. Today, we continue to get plenty of leaflets and community newsletters through the door throughout the year and especially during election periods.
The idea of the ‘zine, specifically, was brought about due to comic fans of the 1930s producing their own mini-comics combining fan art with stories and conversation about the genre. Well before the advent of the internet, people were collaborating and sharing their ideas among their community of fans, and fanzines were a great way to do this.
In 1960s America, the Beat Generation developed their own version of ‘zines to publish their writing and art cheaply. They wanted to subvert the status quo, finding modern society dull and purposeless, instead aiming to express their own lived experiences with passion. This kind of cultural activism continued into the 1980s through punk, a colourful and tumultuous revolt against authoritarianism. Punk ‘zines contained art and poetry as well as social commentary, music reviews, and local activities.
From punk rose Riot Grrrl, from a desire to address sexism in the music industry. Kathleen Hanna was perhaps the leader of this 1990s ‘zine-making era, focusing on feminism and anti-racial work as well as music.
‘Zines continue to be popular in the 21st century. Computer printing and photocopying has made it even easier to produce this kind of booklet cheaply, and ‘zines are available to buy at a nominal price on various internet sites, or even for free.
If you would like to read further about ‘zines, have a look at these websites: