October 13th-Local Author, Francesca Lia Block Reading, Signing and Zine Workshop!
Posted: October 8, 2012 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: children's book world, francesca lia block, young adult fiction, zine workshop, zines Leave a comment »
We’re very excited to announce our zine workshop in collaboration with Local Author Francesca Lia Block!!! You may know her as one of the writers of the classic (and sadly out of print) zine book Zine Scene: A Do It Yourself Guide to Zines, or possibly from her iconic “Weetzie Bat” books!
We’d like to invite you to join us for this very special reading, signing and zine workshop! Perfect for zine beginners or veterans! Francesca will also help run the workshop!
This Saturday October 13th at 2:30pm, this free event hosted by West L.A.’s Children’s Book World is open to teens and adults!
No need to pre-register, but you can RSVP to our Facebook event!
Print Fest is coming!!
Posted: May 20, 2012 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: DIY, KUCR, print, raymond pettibon, zines, zineworks 1 Comment »
I really love that poster.
“The Riverside DIY Printfest is gonna be all up in your business with some fantastical zines, readings and radicalness. This is a FREE, all ages event, so you have no excuse not to join in the shenanigans,” say organizers Angela, Annie, Alicia, and Elliot.
Presenters like She’s Not A Morning Person, Queer Youth Visibility Project, OMG Cow: A Comic Diary, HowdiedoodieCutie, No Girls Allowed Records, Powers of Jen, Buyindiecomics.com, Double Fur, Zineworks (representing the queer zine scene), Bitch King, Blood Orange Infoshop Distro, Nik Manikatos, Mammal Chupie, and Plastic Water are confirmed, with more to come!
There will also be a display of original zines from Raymond Pettibon–Tripping Corpse #2 and #3, Freud’s Universe, Virgin Fears, Capricious Missives, A New Wave of Violence, My Struggle for Life After Death, Other Christs, Asbestos, Captive Chains.
KUCR will be doing live screenprinting, and there will be a massive zine workshop by Zineworks, plus live readings! (See Print Fest’s Facebook page for information on being a part of their live readings.)
Over at Double Fur Press, Victor and RDPF organizer Elliot make a convincing argument for attending.
This is the third year the print fest is happening and it’s a really cool to see something like this, especially in the Inland area. The past couple years we’ve met people from all over Southern California, and also ran into some people at L.A. Zine Fest that we met at last year’s Riverside Print Fest. I’m looking forward in seeing stuff from Queer Youth Visibility Project and No Girls Allowed Records, and readings from Sylvia (The Doktor is In) and Angela Chaos (Bitch King). We’re just happy to be a part of another nexus of creative people who are into zines and print art.
For more info or to see presenter profiles, go to DIYPRINT.org
Riverside DIY Print Fest
Blood Orange Infoshop
Basement of the Life Arts Buidling
3485 University Avenue
Riverside CA 92501
May 19: Rock Against Gentrification!
Posted: May 14, 2012 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: activism, chucos, gentrification, punk rock, zines Leave a comment »
The LAZF is excited to be tabling at this benefit at Chucos Justice Center in Inglewood. We had a great time at FMLY Fest there last year, and we’re big fans of the space. We can’t wait to check out all that the DIY Punk Rock Swap Meet Room has to offer! For directions and other details, consult the Facebook invite.
Rainy day occupations
Posted: March 17, 2012 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: DIY, DIY education, learning, zines Leave a comment »
I wish I had it committed to memory (and someone out there probably does and they’re welcome to correct me), but there’s this quote from Doris where she says that it’s our responsibility to teach ourselves the things that we never learned. I think about it a lot, usually when I’m trying to work up the energy to read a book that’s challenging or when consoling myself after making expensive mistakes in the kitchen. But mostly, I think about how it’s our jobs to teach ourselves, sure, but that we don’t necessarily have to do it alone. In fact, it’s almost always better if someone helps you learn.
One of the biggest advantages of DIY is that it is essentially both solitary and communal–Do It Yourself ends up being Do It Ourselves (or, as FMLY says, Do It Together) as we use our projects to connect with others and share ideas. Two exciting organizations that really embody this community-based approach to learning are DIY Grad School and The Public School. The Public School is currently having a series that is for people who are taking a class through Open Course Ware from MIT, which adds a nice, social element to what might otherwise be a pretty lonely online course.
It’s raining in L.A. and it will be all weekend. Maybe I’ll tap into some of these resources.
Hunting & Gathering
Posted: March 15, 2012 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: free zines, zines 4 Comments »
We desire your input! We’re gathering information for our upcoming Resources page, and in addition to providing a list of places to get zines, we’d like to include some online resources where people can hone their folding skills and experiment with different zine formats. So we ask you….
Where are your favorite free, downloadable zines? Some of my current faves are El Skate Uruguayo Me Dio Todo from the Double Fur Press website and Tap Water from The Small Science Collective, whose amazing mission is to make science fun and accessible through zines. (They also have one on fruit flies. Know thine enemy, I say.)
And while we’re on the topic, where can a gal get a good template and some folding directions? Are there any sites out there that are better (or better looking) than the classic WikiBooks page?
Thanks for the help!
Shelf Life 2: March 24, 2012
Posted: February 28, 2012 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: byron coley, chip kidd, comics, comix, gary panter, la-zine-fest, shelf life, shelf life 2, small press, usc roski fine arts, zines Leave a comment »
One of the advantages of having an event like the L.A. Zine Fest is that you are offered an opportunity to meet like-minded people who tell you about new and interesting events. One such event is Shelf Life 2 at USC, which is free and open to the public.
In a nutshell….
“SHELF LIFE BAZAAR:
SMART, fun, cool, STRANGE, beautiful, OUTRAGEOUS, idiosyncratic, rare, limited, low-run, HARD-TO-FIND, much-coveted, and bound-to-become important BOOKS, MAGAZINES, and objects from many of the finest INDEPENDENT PUBLISHERS, ARTISTS, and VENDORS around.
// Throughout the day
Harris Hall and Watt Hall Courtyards……An eclectic marketplace featuring publishers, artists, designers and their merchandise. This will be an opportunity for the event’s participants to show (and sign!) their books, magazines, and journals, and it will provide a platform for an even more diverse group of artists, publishers, and vendors to participate. Interesting crowd, interesting vendors, and interesting conversations.“
In order to ensure that there are some very interesting conversations, Shelf Life has assembled a killer list of guest speakers and workshops. The workshops at this event range from a discussion with Slake Magazine on the importance of narrative (a hands-on element is implied!) to an opportunity to make a collage that will become part of a collaborative zine with Beautiful/Decay. Plus, Chip Kidd in the flesh! His book covers are incredible, and his novels are capable of lighting a fire under the butts of procrastinating artists of all media. Check the website for details on all workshops.
We’re very happy to learn that some of our LAZF presenters will be tabling at the event, like Amy Fortunato and Lee Noble of No Kings Record Cadre, Simon Sotelo, Champoy Hate, and JT Steiny, but we’re always looking forward to meeting new, talented people (maybe future LAZF attendees?)
RSVP and get event updates on Facebook
Big Saturday Night!
Posted: February 10, 2012 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: alex chiu, champoy hate, comics, comix, daryl gussin, flockshop, home room, permanent records, punk, razorcake, zines Leave a comment »
What a week! We made buttons, we bought TONS of zines, we saw some great live music, and we had our picture taken with a giant zine. We hope you found some great new places to hang out or a new favorite zine!
This Saturday’s events promise to be a great way to end a week chockfull of great things to do and fun places to do them. This Saturday brings events from Alex Chiu, Champoy Hate, AND Daryl Gussin. We don’t know about you, but we are dead set on going to all three. It can be done!
Two-two-two times the fun! : Today’s L.A. Zine Week events
Posted: February 9, 2012 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: art walk, daryl gussin, DBA pour over bar, downtown artwalk, eagle rock center for the arts, free, last bookstore, razorcake, rebecca inducil, zines Leave a comment »We’re very excited that The Last Bookstore is going to start carrying zines. In fact, we are so excited, we are rolling out the welcome wagon! Join the LAZF organizers in welcoming the zine section to the store Thursday, Feb. 9 during ArtWalk! This means that besides the LAZF, there will be coffee from the new DBA Pour Over Bar in the store and all the regular ArtWalk madness, like food trucks and free wine and cheese somewhere.
The L.A. Zine Fest organizers will be passing out flyers and postcards, and may have candy!
If ArtWalks aren’t your thing, consider dropping by the Eagle Rock Center for the Arts, where Daryl Gussin and Rebecca Inducil are teaching you how to make a zine for FREE! This workshop will take you through not only the mechanics of assembly but also help you develop content to fill your beautiful zine pages.
Getting To Know Your Local Zinesters: Shaddy Zeineddine & Walt! Gorecki
Posted: January 31, 2012 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: DIY, home room, shaddy zeineddine, venue, walt gorecki, werewolves, zines Leave a comment »
Shaddy Zeineddine & Walt! Gorecki
Home Room
What was your first zine about and when was it made?
Walt!: I guess the first zine I took seriously was “Fillin’ yr hole with Werewolves” last year. But I’ve been making comics and booklets for a really long time now. The first one I made multiples of to sell was a screen printed booklet called “Cannibals in Love,” in 2005.
Shaddy: My first zine was titled “Connotation”, it was an anthology of my friends and my own work. I self-published about 50 copies it in the summer of 2005, each with unique hand-made cover-art.
Describe your most recent zine.
Walt!: My most recent zine is “Fillin’ yr hole with Werewolves too: starring Jason Bateman.” It’s all about werewolves, from a variety of artists, and it’s meant to fill that empty hole in your heart that results from a lack of werewolves in daily life.
Shaddy: My most recent zine is an essay I wrote promoting Urban Farming. I published the first copy in spring 2011.
Of all the things you’ve ever made, zine-related or otherwise, what’s your one favorite?
Walt!: Home Room of course!
Shaddy: Home Room? haha
Name three of your influences and how they affected your work.
Walt!: One, EC Comics – the old Tales from the Crypt and Vault of Horror comics had the best gruesome artwork, and cheesiest puns, they were the best! My dad had quite a collection, so I was reading these when most kids were listening to Raffi or reading The Hungry Caterpillar. Two, Rocky Horror Picture Show – I haven’t been into this for a while, but it got me interested in live theatre, glam rock, queer culture, and over-the-top cult cheese since I first saw it when I was around 8. I used to even perform in a cast in my younger days. All of that still feeds into the major artistic productions I work on today. Three, Oingo Boingo – sonically brilliant, but they also had a great live show that was turned into the film Forbidden Zone. They were masters of taking elements of early jazz culture, classic cartoons, and punk and new wave rock, and making it their own.
Shaddy: Bill Hicks, Stephin Merrit, and Samuel Clemens (Mark Twain). As a dark, dramatic, and emotional person, these masters of comedy helped me better understand myself and develop new perspectives and ways of expressing myself more clearly through humor.
What do you do when you’re not creating and how does it help or harm what you do artistically?
Walt!: The only time I’m not creating is when I sleep. I hate that I have to sleep.
Shaddy: Almost all of the free time I used to have is now devoted to Home Room, but I still make some time to spend quality time with my close friends and family. Everything I do is made possible with their love and support. Even when they drive me nuts, I understand I could never survive nor would I want to live in a world without them.
Getting To Know Your Local Zinester: Andy Ristaino
Posted: January 30, 2012 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: adventure time, andy ristaino, cartoon network, la-zine-fest, origami vinyl, zines 1 Comment »
Andy Ristaino
creator of Tunnel, Corperation Earth Needs Your Help, The Babysitter, Escape From Dullsville, and Skronked
What was your first zine about and when was it made?
My first official zine was called “Nightblade the Nearsighted Ninja” self published in 1995. It was basically a comic I had been working on in my spare time.
Describe your most recent zine.
I recently completed a zine which is a collection of drawings of people from the future that I drew on the bus on the way to work. The title pretty much describes it: “one hundred and forty people from the future, twelve cavemen, one old-timey muscle man, nine beach bums, five pirates, a dog, and a monster.”
Of all the things you’ve ever made, zine-related or otherwise, what’s your one favorite?
I’m pretty excited about my most recent one.
What do you do when you’re not creating and how does it help or harm what you do artistically?
I draw all day while working for Cartoon Network, when I leave work I try to do some more when I get home. Working all the time has resulted in some back and hand problems, but that’s alright, when I’m not creating something that usually means I’m feeling depressed. Recently I’ve been spending a lot of my free time learning the banjo ukelele, and working on a mural for at Origami Vinyl.
