Alright kids it’s almost here!!! The First Annual Brooklyn Zine Fest is taking place on Sunday April 15th 2012 from 11am to 6Pm at Public Assembly, located at 70 N6th st in Williamsburg. Not only is this gonna be an awesome event where tons of zinesters will be tabling, hocking, and talking all things ziney, but get this… it’s FREE! If that isn’t enough to get you down there, maybe the fact that 2 Daily Planet contributors will be tabling will! Morgan Pielli and I (separately that is) will be promoting our current projects and I will be hosting the raffle, so if you wanna see me act the fool and possibly win some killer prizes (one being a Forbidden Planet Prize Pack!) then you best be at the BZF!
First Annual Brooklyn Zine Fest Arrives at Public AssemblyBrooklyn, NY (April 15, 2012) — Filling a long-standing void in New York City print culture, zine publishers Matt Carman and Kseniya Yarosh, in partnership with writer/curator Eric Nelson, present the First Annual Brooklyn Zine Fest. The BZF is a space for creative, independent voices from Brooklyn and beyond to connect with an engaged audience, while making their self-published magazines available to fans and attendees of all ages. This event will be held on Sunday, April 15 from 11am to 6pm at Public Assembly in Williamsburg. Admission is free.More than 60 writers, illustrators, photographers, and publishers will be selling their printed matter in all three of Public Assembly’s cavernous rooms, with DJing by Rachel Kowal of music blog Sonic Smörgåsbord. This curated line-up includes zine scene heavyweights like Slice Harvester, Birdsong Micropress, Put A Egg On It, and Ayun Halliday’s East Village Inky, plus local pillars Desert Island, ABC No Rio, and Printed Matter. And newbies too: Tom Blunt is adapting his monthly “Meet the Lady” variety show into zine format for the Fest.Said Carman, “Zines can have an immense impact on a reader. You could make a blog called ‘Tom Selleck Eating Various Indian Desserts’ and briefly reach millions of people, but a zine is tactile and memorable. You can’t pull ‘You’re the man now, dog’ off the shelf when the power goes out.”Zines have enjoyed a recent rise in popularity as evidenced by The New York Times’ “Zines Have a Resurgence Among the Web-Savvy,” Gothamist feature “Six Killer NYC Zines Worth Reading,” and MoMA’s “Millennium Magazines” exhibit. Still, there are few outlets for local zine makers to present their work to the public. Said Yarosh, “Zines are small, sometimes scrappy, sometimes beautiful, and it can be hard to find the right place for them. So we decided to create that place.”“The last major zine fest in New York City was several years ago. At this juncture in DIY culture, it’s critical to bring zines into the public eye as a medium that’s been thriving for decades and continues to do so in the digital age,” said Nelson.In addition to homegrown talent, exhibitors are coming from Philadelphia, D.C., Portland, Chicago, and Reno, NV. The goal is to not only promote local zine makers, but also introduce attendees to publications they might not discover otherwise.More than $1,500 in prizes have been donated by Brooklyn businesses and creators to a raffle that will be taking place at the Fest, including a one-year membership to 3rd Ward, signed Ugly Americans merch from Augenblick Studios, Forbidden Planet comics, a year subscription to Zine of the Month, organically crafted skin care from Australian Scent, and two pairs of glasses from Classic Specs.While the event is all ages, attendees 21 and over can enjoy drink specials at Public Assembly’s full bar, including “marzinis” and beer from Brooklyn Brewery. Cubana Social will have a table at the Fest selling coffee, pastries, and lunch items throughout the day. As the weather warms up, the Brooklyn Zine Fest is the perfect place to find some new reading material for those lazy afternoons in the park.Carman and Yarosh have been creating their zine I Love Bad Movies and hosting film screenings in New York City since 2009. Eric Nelson is a writer/performer who has curated art and literary events in Brooklyn and around the country. To contact the organizers directly, e-mail brooklynzinefest@gmail.com. For the latest updates and interviews with participants, visit brooklynzinefest.com
The Brooklyn Zine Fest is FREE & open to the public, with more than 60 writers and artists showcasing their self-published works. It will be held on Sunday April 15, 2012 from 11am to 6pm at Public Assembly (70 North 6th St.) in Williamsburg [Google Map]. Take the L to Bedford Ave., the G to Metropolitan Ave., or the J, M, Z to Marcy Ave.
ALL AGES and open to everyone, though you must be 21 to drink.
FOOD: Cubana Social will be selling NYC’s best empanadas, coffee, pastries, and other items at the Brooklyn Zine Fest. Additional food can be purchased at their location next door to Public Assembly.
DRINKS: Featuring special $5 drafts from Brooklyn Brewery. Public Assembly’s fully-stocked bar will also offer “marzinis” and all other, less-punny drinks. Soft drinks available for attendees under 21.
DJ: Rachel Kowal of music blog Sonic Smörgåsbord.
RAFFLE: More than $1,500 in prizes from local Brooklyn businesses and creators will be raffled off at the Fest. Check out the Raffle page for prizes and details.
