‘Zines, comics and other ephemera

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Local and regional ‘zinesters unite for a celebration of independent publishing

By its very definition, the word “ephemera” suggests something that is fleeting or impermanent. It could be considered somewhat ironic, then, that the objects at the center of Lexington’s Ephemera Fest — a celebration of ’zines, comics, and other “do it yourself” publications, taking place May 10 — in fact serve to preserve or sustain a specific slice of culture.

“’Zine archives are a great way to preserve the subculture thought and style, which is often neglected in traditional history classes,” said Ida Sell, assistant archivist at the University of Kentucky’s Special Collections and one of the primary organizers for this year’s Ephemera Fest. From feminism to history to poetry, each of the festival’s organizers comes to the event with a different background and interest in ’zine culture. Sell approaches it with a strong interest in the craft of bookmaking.

“In school I studied book history and consider ’zine making an interesting part of the self-publishing movement,” she said.

Now in its second year in Lexington, Ephemera Fest is the brainchild of Michelle Aiello, a longtime ’zine publisher and collector who started the event in her hometown Chicago and operated it for three years in that city before moving to Lexington. More than two dozen independent publishers — most from the Lexington area but several from Chicago, New York, Boston and other locations will exhibit, vend and trade their publications at this year’s event, which will also feature several workshops, readings and more.

Under the direction of Aiello and fellow Lexington ’zine culture junkie Cheyenne Hohman, last year’s Ephemera Fest took place at Smiley Pete’s tadoo lounge (an event space that is also this publication’s headquarters) and was met with a level of acclaim that even the organizers found surprising.

“We were expecting around 100 people to show up, and I think we had closer to 300,” Hohman said. “People immediately started asking when the next one was going to be.”

This year, Hohman and Aiello not only expanded their core organizing team, but they’ve also moved to a larger space, downtown’s Carnegie Center for Literacy & Learning, where they are expecting to nearly double last year’s attendance. The organizers are excited to offer an opportunity for local and regional ’zine makers to interact in an intimate environment and share their publications with fans.

While there’s no official definition for ’zines (pronounced “zeens”), they are typically self-made, small-circulation publications, photocopied and bound by hand.

Often created as labors of love — produced for the passion of self-expression and exchange of information, rather than for a profit — they tend to offer a tangible and genuine glimpse into the psyche and personality of the person(s) who created them, as well as an uncensored, unsullied voice of expression.

“The goal isn’t sales, the goal isn’t readership; it is simply to connect on a human-to-human level,” Anna Campomanes, another of the event’s organizers, said of the culture of ’zines. “People really crave a local and personal relevancy, to physically connect with another human and to feel their communities.”

The ’zine format is thought to have originated by science fiction fans who created “fanzines” in the early 1900s, though it has since become widely affiliated with the punk rock subculture that gave rise in the 1970s.

According to fellow Ephemera Fest organizer Chuck Clenney, ’zines are “nuggets of first-hand information, shared as democratically as possible.” Though his current focus is primarily on publishing poetry — he organized the line-up of more than 20 readers for this year’s event — like many in the ’zine community, Clenney was introduced to the culture through the underground punk scene, via a Cincinnati-based ’zine called Neus Subjex.

“The appeal was that you could learn about some amazing new albums and bands, directly from the source, without any kind of economic incentive manipulating the information,” he said.

While many people affiliate the ’zine culture with a punk rock or socio-political ethos, however, Aiello and Hohman are quick to point out that ’zines can be as varied as the people who create them. Literary publishers, crafters, printmakers, and purveyors of greeting cards, buttons and other handmade items will all be present at Ephemera Fest, as will DIY record labels, diary-style personal ’zines and fashion magazines.

“There’s a lot of diversity of expression in ’zines,” said Hohman, who has published dozens of ’zines over the past 12 or 13 years on topics ranging from sexuality to travel to karaoke.

Aiello vividly remembers her own introduction to ’zine culture.

“When I was 15 or 16 I saw a flier at a record store near my parents house in Chicago for a ’zine called ‘Bomb,’” she said. “I remember it so well — I didn’t know what a ’zine was but I saw this really cool flier with photo copied collages, and I was like ‘OK, this is for me.’”

A self-described “mail art and pen pal nerd,” Aiello reached out to Kristen Willoughby, the creator of “Bomb,” and formed a relationship with her via correspondence. As a result of Willoughby’s encouragement, Aiello started her personal ’zine, “Indigo,” in 1995, featuring personal stories, music playlists, cut-out photos, reviews and more. Nearly 20 years later, she continues to publish the ’zine, which has been called “a study in confessional perseverance” by the entertainment website The Onion A.V. Club. She also occasionally publishes another ’zine called “Mish Libs,” which features original Mad Libs-style word games.

According to Aiello, the act of self-publishing — and being part of a movement larger than any single ’zine by itself — can be an empowering enterprise for anyone. While the Information Age has largely increased the ease of sharing and exchanging information in recent years, the ‘zine culture remains a valuable tool for providing a public voice to people who might not otherwise feel they have one.

’Zines and independent publishing feed an innate desire that neither mass media, large publishers nor digital publishing can fulfill, Campomanes said.

“The drive to give, to reveal, to be understood, to have a meaningful and tangible exchange is irrevocably a part of being human.”

Click here for more info on exhibitors and what to expect at Ephemera Fest!

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