On Saturday, vendors from all over Philadelphia filled Mitten Hall to celebrate their love for zines.
Vendors shared with us the importance of this artistic expression.
From the smallest to the biggest zines, you can find one for just about any subject here at Philly Zine Fest, but what is a zine exactly?
“Zine is short for magazine, a zine is basically any kind of printed media anyone can make and is usually DIY outside the confines of the industry,” says Corey Bechelli, a zine artist and member of The Soapbox Community Print Shop.
Philly Zine Fest has been held annually since 2002 to promote zine making.
In 2022, Zine Fest moved from West Philadelphia to Mitten Hall after Professor Juris Milestones students in his class wanted a way to sell their own zines:
“Anyone can participate! People from Temple can have a table, we usually reserve a few tables for them. but also just getting people in to check out the artists that are already here.”
The festival was packed with well over 150 vendors from all over the city showcasing their zany zines.
One of those vendors, Junior Temple Student, Ella Carson says her friend introduced her to the art form and she has been hooked since.:
“It’s just channeling my artistic energy, through making zines, sharing what I want, making what I want, and it’s been like the greatest thing ever.”
Visitors at Zine Fest had the opportunity to buy zines from vendors and make their very own.
“I don’t want to spend a lot of money and so you find paper that you have at your disposal and you start drawing on it and make cheap photocopies,” says Bechelli.
Carson says that zine-making is an important way to give people a chance to express themselves as individuals:
“Zines have such a great power for kids especially to really learn how their voice matters, in the world that their art is valued and that people in their community want to hear what they want to say.”
Philly Zine Fest will return to Temples Campus for a fourth year in 2025.
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