For decades, alternative culture has distributed and exchanged ideas, art, and information through small, self-published pamphlets called “zines.” The name, short for “magazine,” has one rule: there are no rules. On June 22nd and 23rd, volunteer “zinesters” will host their 9th annual Zine Con at Goofball Sk8boards. This year it will be the biggest yet.
Zine Con provides an opportunity for independent writers, artists, and activists to publish, sell, trade, and share their work with the world. In total, about 140 different zine makers will set up tables and display their work over the two-day event. This year's convention will still be free to attend, and will be held indoors to avoid the humid Midwest heat.
“It's so great to see so many zine writers who are interested. It seems like every year the interest grows, which means the zine community is growing,” says Nash High, one of the volunteer organizers. “We'll probably have about 140 people in total, 77 exhibitors each day, which is great,” says Jade Dream Hogan, another organizer and founder of Zine Con.
Whether you make gin yourself or don't know exactly what gin is, event organizers are encouraging people to come. “So even if you're like, 'I don't know what gin is,' just come and have a look around. Breathe in the atmosphere and soak it all up,” says Dana Meyer, another gin con organizer. “Even if you're not setting up a booth, if you're making gin, bring some and trade with other people. Like Pokémon cards, trading gin with other people is half the fun.”
The growth of Kansas City's zine scene has brought people from different niches and subcultures together. With the freedom to do so without the approval of a publisher or editor, High elaborates that zines offer more unfiltered work than other mediums: “It's going to be a little smoother in a way that could potentially damage some of the messages people are putting out.” actually “Zines give us the opportunity to communicate,” says Hai. Really It is direct and impactful, even aggressive and controversial.”
The importance of independent publishing is especially true for many marginalized groups who often don't get a proper platform. This artistic avenue allows them to express their experiences through storytelling. “The idea of ​​a primary source is that it's coming directly from the person experiencing it. It's not filtered, it's someone showing you very directly from their heart and their experience,” says Hogan.
Zines aren't new to the art scene, either. Their history dates back to the early 1900s, shortly after the invention of the printing press. “During the Harlem Renaissance, Black creatives were making art and music zines to get their words out there,” Meyer says. “Then in the 1940s, sci-fi writers started sharing fan fiction and coined the term fanzine, which is where the word zine comes from. In the '90s, Riot Grrrl, a feminist punk movement from Olympia, Washington, was heavily involved with a zine of the same name.”
Outside of the annual convention, organizers also host several other events for those interested in zines. Each month, Zine Con hosts workshops where creators can share tutorials and make zines together. They also host a zine club on the third Tuesday of each month at Goofball Sk8boards, where zine makers show off their zines.
“Anyone can make one. You don't need any skills. Just put it on paper and start using it,” says event organizer Nat Dolitsky. As artists around the metro eagerly await the highly anticipated Zine Con in mid-June, the next zine workshop will be held at the Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art on May 30th, where artists can get hands-on with collages of various literary works.
For anyone wanting to get involved in zine culture in the KC metro area, this event is the perfect way to get started ahead of the 9th Annual Zine Con, which takes place June 22nd and 23rd at Goofball Sk8boards.