I have contacted a few zine makers, publishers and libraries hoping to start a conversation, and while I haven’t heard back yet, It’s worthwhile understanding the ‘scene’ a little more. My firsthand experience of zines and zine culture comes from being involved in punk / DIY / left activist scenes over the years, but it occurred to me I wasn’t 100% on the details or origins of the mode.
A (Very) Brief History
Evolving from the tradition of pulp science-fiction ‘fanzines’, zines are small publications written and printed independently directly by their creators. Usually only a limited number are printed and distributed for a small audience, and the content traditionally covers niche, underground or controversial topics, and featuring marginalised or voices unheard by mainstream society.
Coming to a resurgence in the 1970’s documenting the palpable but mostly unreported punk subcultures of New York (in fact, the word ‘punk’ is taken from the title of a 1975 zine by Legs McNeil about the bands in the New York scene), the self-publication and potential for unheard perspectives and insights was integral to zines’ popularity. The 1980s and 1990s queercore and riot grrrl movements are closely associated with a vibrant zine culture, as is much of third-wave feminism, highlighting the form’s effectiveness for communicating radical ideas from marginalised positions. Erika Reinstein, founder of Riot Grrrl Press, echoed this sentiment – “Every time we pick up a pen, or an instrument, or get anything done, we are creating the revolution. We are the revolution.” (Porter, 2019)
Current ‘State’
Zines have retained their popularity in alternative subcultures in part because of their loose constraints and ease with which they can be made. Many zines cover music scenes and genres, many cover issues of activism or social justice, but many also feature poetry, photography, illustration or other creative outlets.
Zines are often self-funding and offer little in the way of profit – while this maintains their anti-capitalist sentiment, it can leave their creators, who create zines in their spare time or as part of freelance work, in a difficult financial. Related to this is the issue of audience – a small circulation works and is perhaps necessary for the form, but how can this be opened out to provide income for the creators? Should it be?
Online and social media, particularly visual formats such as Instagram or Pinterest, are interesting to consider in terms of zine culture – does the accessibility and mass use of the internet a new avenue for self-published zines, or a dilution of the form? To what extent is physical media desired in the current climate?
Is there a danger of DIY/zine aesthetics being co-opted by capitalist corporations? To what extent has this already happened? (see Kemp, 2019)
Some ‘key’ texts
While given the nature of the form, there is little in the way of authoritative writing on zine culture, some key texts include:
- Duncombe, S. (2017). Notes from underground: zines and the politics of alternative culture. Portland, Or.: Microcosm Publishing.
- Todd, M. and Watson, E. (2006). Whatcha mean, what’s a zine? The art of making zines and minicomics. Boston, Massachusetts: Graphia.
As well as anecdotal writing from inside zine cultures such as:
- German, B. (2015). Krylon Underground 1984-1992. Lasting Lexicon.
My interest
I am interested in zines because of many of the reasons that anyone is interested in zines – I love the DIY spirit of them. Anyone can make a zine and feel that sense of creative output, and as such many zines are made by creators who aren’t as visible in mainstream arts culture, such as trans and queer folx, people of colour or different-ability/neurodiverse individuals.
In a homogenised and capital-driven mainstream arts culture, zines and the culture that surround them are a firm attempt at a capital-resistant creative outlet as well as strengthening and cultivating communities based around shared interests.
I am interested in the inherently political nature of the medium and if there is something about this which can be utilized in my practice or in new ideas outside of performance or zine culture.
Bibliography
Kemp, N. (2019). ‘Zine culture’ predicted to drive creativity in 2019. [online] Campaignlive.co.uk. Available at: https://www.campaignlive.co.uk/article/zine-culture-predicted-drive-creativity-2019/1522897 [Accessed 9 Feb. 2019].
Porter, K. (2016). The Resurgence of Zine Culture and Why It’s So Important. [online] Study Breaks. Available at: https://studybreaks.com/culture/the-resurgence-of-zine-culture-and-why-its-so-important/ [Accessed 7 Feb. 2019].
MACPP // Jordan Linton 