On Saturday, May 20th, local writers, artists, and zine publishers will gather in CCA’s Living Room Gallery for the first annual Santa Fe Zine Fest. Matron Records is excited to be tabling at this fantastic event and serving up a whole host of screen-printed zines and Matron merchandise. While Santa Fe's die-hard zine fans can hardly wait for the city's first annual festival devoted to zines, comics, and other forms of alternative press and DIY media, others might be scratching their heads about what zines really are.

A “zine,” which is short for magazine or fanzine, is a small-circulation, self-published booklet, usually reproduced using a photocopier. They’re distinct from other self-published books in that zine publishers—or zinesters—trade or sell their zines very inexpensively. The intention isn’t to make a profit but to share writing, ideas, or art. The term “zine” can be traced back to the pulp science fiction arena of the 40s and 50s. Later, the punk scene of the 70s and the Riot Grrl movement of the early 90s popularized zines written about politics, music, and personal issues. But the beauty of zines is that they can be almost anything—poetry, photography, art, personal essays, music reviews, recipes… the possibilities are endless.

With the rise of the internet and blogs, zines experienced a lull in the late 90s and early 00s. But recently they’ve been embraced by a new generation, and zine festivals like Santa Fe’s have been popping up all over the country, allowing new and established zinesters to share their gems with the public.
 
Hosted in CCA’s cozy Living Room Gallery, Santa Fe Zine Fest will feature upwards of 24 zine publishers showcasing over 100 zines. In addition to local zines, publishers are traveling from as far away as San Antonio, Las Cruces, and Denver. “It’s a great mix,” says the fest's organizer Bucket Siler. “We’ll have personal zines, photo zines, poetry, DIY instructional zines, fiction, illustration… Some of the exhibitors have been at this for 20 years, others are publishing their first zine for the festival.”

Santa Fe Zine Fest
Saturday, May 20th

The Living Room @ CCA
1050 Old Pecos Trail,
Santa Fe, NM 87505

11AM - 5PM
FREE ADMISSION

Visit the event page for more details.