2023 Paperview Zinefest
PAPERVIEW
Writeup by William Smith
PAPERVIEW ZINEFEST
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A GOOD TIME GUARANTEED
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PAPERVIEW ZINEFEST 📺 A GOOD TIME GUARANTEED 📺
It sure was hot, wasn’t it? After a week of worrying over flipflopping weather forecasts we’re just glad it didn’t rain. The call was changing on the hour leading into kickoff morning, with the uncertainty weighing heavy enough for us to cut each table a protective plastic sheets under the already blazing sun. In case of emergency: save the paper.
The name “Paperview” came months earlier from Claire Krüeger who’d been pocketing it for even longer. A name that good warrants dedication otherwise reserved for the beyond as it must’ve been its gift, and those are rare around here, just look at what we ended up as. Location and finance quickly followed with gratitude to our home port and arts funder.
We gave our all to parlay this support for us into our support of you, for we are nothing without our readers, contributors, and collaborators. The value for visitor and participant were equally considered. For those who accepted our invite or attended unprompted we hope our gratitude was felt second only to the sun. With an esteem even higher I thank our team of volunteers who not only dodged my flop sweat but made possible a multifaceted day of success. There is no cause more worthy than guiding new entries onto readers’ shelves and into artists’ wallets. That and stickers.
LIVE MUSICAL PERFORMANCES!
Situated between Portland Ave. and Lytle St. is an acre patch of green belonging to Portland Museum and commandeered by Printed for Paperview. Punctuating this oasis is ninety rightward degrees of Italianate Mansion sporting exhibit, artifact, sun-bleached brick, and wind-worn wood. Connecting two and two is a back porch playing that day the role of stage, raising up with silent pride a musical arrangement of Printed alumni: Scott T. Anderson, Emily Ravenscraft, and Producing a Kind Generation, with openings from Derby City Midnight, Litemares, and E. Noel Sayers. Each artist brought the backyard’s long and short-term inhabitants a refreshing breeze of honest human expression, entering first through the ear before puncturing the heart.
ZINES! ZINES! ZINES!
Occupied tightly within the backyard’s stenciled shade were the day’s vendors. Prospective buyers slid from one table to the next as if exploring railcars on a train and finding within each the design sensibility of a separate conductor. Zinemakers, even the most reserved of them, thrive from interaction with others. What begins with a conversation extends to the home through written word and image. If I may return to the train comparison, the zine is a drifter. A traveling medium unencumbered by material value toward thoughtful trade and unintended abandonment the same. From hand to hand the zine continues, with Paperview being only its start.
ARTS WORKSHOPS!
Print is reproduction, and artists must reproduce as do their pieces. I’m talking about teaching here. Paperview had the starting lineup of Printed’s creative team running drills with visitors. Screenprinting layups, wheatpasting homeruns, letterpressing touchdowns; the whole nine yards. And the best part: everybody won, walking away with free totebags, stickers, zines for their troubles. While we provided the materials and our volunteers the time, each visitor added their creative spark without which the ink had stayed bottled.
NEW EXHIBIT AT PORTLAND MUSEUM!
A positive effect of the day’s heat was that it encouraged people to explore the airconditioned interior of Portland Museum. Inside rested anxiously a surprise, being the debut of an exhibit honoring the neighborhood’s print history titled Anchor Management: The Magic Behind Louisville’s Oldest Neighborhood Newspaper. Louisville’s print community of today were treated to a history lesson and reminded of how long the torch they hold has been lit. Founded in 1975 by a group of ambitious youth, the Portland Anchor currently continues publication. May its voice continue as will ours.
For More Information:
Paperview was possible thanks to support from:
Photos by Kenna Ellis (ZINES Section), E Sayers (MUSIC Section), Lindsey Cummins and William Smith (Other)
