Open the pages of an uncensored, self-published, wildly expressive array of zines, perzines and chapbooks at the inaugural Long Beach Zine Fest (LBZF) at the Museum of Latin American Art (MOLAA) this Sunday, April 12 from 11:00AM to 5:00PM. This free event is open to the public and will give participants a chance to read a diverse selection of zines, delve into the work of myriad zine artists and publishers, listen to live music and attend a wide range of zine panels and workshops.
Long Beach has a thriving zine culture, one that’s oftentimes hard to pin down or keep up with. LBZF will showcase over 100 of these independent publishers and artists not just from Long Beach, but from all over Southern California. In celebration of Do-It-Yourself (DIY) culture, the festival will bring together writers, cartoonists, designers, photographers, artists and DIY advocates who, according to LBZF, “believe in the power of print as a viable artistic medium in today’s web-centric world.”
The one-day event will be the first independent-publishing expo of its kind in Long Beach. Whether you’re a zine-maker yourself or you simply have an appreciation for the spirited, printed and unabashed work of local creatives, attendees can learn about zine history, a once-underground method for communities to spread information before the internet monopolized the task. Zines, short for “magazine” or “fanzine” are open doors to entire worlds of free-range thought and artwork.
Workshops at the festival will include The Zine Table, a panel discussion on DIY, counterculture and zine history, featuring moderator Myriam Gurba of Sister Spit, More Than a Feeling, a discussion on how to translate everyday moments, as well as life-changing events, into entertaining and expressive stories and Mending Your Dress: Coping with Trauma Through Writing, hosted by NeelyBat Chestnut of Mend My Dress Press, where topics such as how to write about deeply personal issues and how to balance sharing and oversharing, will be discussed.
Artist workshops will teach participants how to draw and create a cartoon character, the basics of printmaking, how to make yogurt and how to make paper. Attendees will be able to purchase chapbooks, comics, graphic novels and zines directly from their creators at the zine marketplace.
LBZF’s final pre-event on the eve of the festival on Saturday, April 11, a Perzine Reading hosted by Eryca Sender of “My Little Friend” zine and L.A. Zine Fest co-founder, will include readers Kelli Callis of “Kurt Cobain Was Lactose Intolerant Conspiracy Zine” and MariNaomi of “Kiss & Tell: A Romantic Resume, Ages 0 to 22, Dragon’s Breath and Other True Stories.” Click here to RSVP.
For more information about LBZF and to check out some of the featured zinesters, click here. LBZF attendees will have free access to tour MOLAA’s current exhibits, thanks to the museum’s Free Admission Sundays, sponsored by Target. MOLAA is located at 628 Alamitos Ave.