In 2011, participants of the Feminist Zine Symposium at the Carnegie Library reached out to local indie cartoonists to organize a Pittsburgh-based event to promote zines and zinemakers. Since its debut at Artist Image Resource in 2011, the PZF has attracted a diverse group of artists, writers, and activists from across the region whose content varies, but the format remains the same: the zine.
A zine is any self-published, small-run book commonly photocopied. Historic figures like Martin Luther, Benjamin Franklin, or William Blake could be considered early “zinesters”, but the modern term grew out of 1940s rock ‘n’ roll-related “fanzines” and was popularized by the Punk Rock and Riot Grrl communities in the 1970s and ‘90s, respectively. An icon of DIY ethos and radical, democratic information sharing, the zine decentralizes media and vaults individual expression while remaining inexpensive.