Jean McEwan – Visual Artist, Organiser and Facilitator

Zines

I make zines (hand made DIY magazines) both solo and collaboration with others. I’m attracted to zinemaking for many reasons: because they are democratic – anyone can make one with the simplest of materials, they are immediate (all you need is access to a photocopier) and you don’t have to wait for permission. Zinemaking is empowering – you make the rules about what you want to say, and how you want to say it. I also love the aesthetic of hand made zines, their rawness and energy. Reading a zine that someone is like a little trip inside someone”s head.

My zinemaking is really varied – from fanzines about my enthusiasms- favourite filmmakers and musicians and artists such as Werner Herzog the Flaming Lips, Mark E Smith and Henry Darger; to perzines (personal zines) about trying to pay attention more and a zine of my Nana’s memories; to image-based collage zines, and zines about social and political issues that I care about. Zines are intrinsically political – by taking the means of production into our own hands, we are bypassing mediation and permission.

As an artist, zines appeal to me as they are a direct and affordable means to distribute my work on my own terms, bypassing conventional art world channels. Zines allow for experimentation and messing with boundaries – they are a good place to mash up art and life. Zines allow us to explore identity and ideas in a fluid way.

Zines are also an important of connecting with other people – coming together to make a zine about something you care about, or communicating something you want to say to people. Zines build community, understanding and connection with each other. This is so important in these times we are living in.

OH, WAIT Zine