Are You Ready for Zine Season?

[Portland Zine Symposium]

Hello zinesters!

Spring is here (although it feels like summer here in Portland) and we are gearing up for zine season here at the PZS headquarters. Lots of events coming up and exciting things in the works. Read on for more details….

1. Portland Button Works Turns Two!

2. Workshops

3. Volunteers

4. Bike in Movie!

5. Donations

6. Tabling Update

7. Other Upcoming Zine Events

1. We are so proud of our very own Alex Wrekk whose shop—Portland Button Works—has been up and running for two whole years! Come celebrate with us on Tuesday, May 20 at 7pm for an open button making party and readings by the Portland Zine Symposium organizers. There will be various bits and ephemera for you to make your own buttons available by donation. All proceeds will go toward supporting Portland Zine Symposium. Refreshments will be provided!

Portland Button Works

1322 N. Killingsworth St.

Portland OR

Tuesday May 20, 7pm

2. Do you have a skill to share? Is there a zine-related topic you're interested in discussing? Do you have a creative exercise you want to share with other zinesters? If so, please submit a workshop application! 

This year we're doing workshops a bit differently—we're hosting a skillshare focused on hands-on, DIY skills on Friday July 11 at the IPRC and then holding our regular workshops during the symposium (Saturday July 12 and Sunday July 13). Don't worry—if you aren't sure exactly where your idea might fit in, we can help you figure it out. 

3. We are also accepting applications for volunteers before and during the zine symposium! Portland Zine Symposium is powered by volunteers! All of us organizers are volunteers, and we need even more volunteers to jump in and help us out as the event gets closer. 

Want to get to know your city better? Volunteer to hang posters for us! Don't have a table at the symposium but still want a place to hang out? Consider signing up for a 2-hour shift at the info/merch table! Have a car? You might want to help us pick up donations from all the hip businesses and organizations that graciously donate to us each year. 

Thank you for doing your part to make Portland Zine Symposium the best it can possibly be!

4. We are proud to announce that we have decided on this year's bike-in movie: BMX Bandits! Please join us at the IPRC on Thursday, June 5 at 7pm for our annual bike-in movie in conjunction with Pedalpalooza. We'll have popcorn, candy, sodas, and beer available, and we'll be collecting donations for Portland Zine Symposium, so please bring some cash. Also, in the spirit of BMX Bandits, 80's attire is encouraged! Tease your hair, break out the neon, and get excessively bejeweled! Hope to see you there!

Independent Publishing Resource Center

1001 SE Division St.

Portland, OR

Thursday June 5, 7pm

5. Do you know of a business or organization that might be interested in donating goods, services, food, or cold hard cash to the Portland Zine Symposium? Now is the time of year when our donations coordination is in full swing, so please let us know if you are interested in donating to us or if you know of someone we should reach out to! Email suggestions to pdxz...@gmail.com. Thanks!

6. We have finally worked through our tabling registration! If you have signed up for the waitlist, please check your email to see if you have been accepted into regular registration and complete payment to secure your spot. 

There is a waitlist for this year, although there is still a good chance that we will be able to pull folks from there pending inevitable cancellations, so please sign up if you are interested in getting a table. Also please remember that you can totally come and have a great time at the zine symposium without having a table! In fact, some people think this is preferable!

And as a courtesy to those on the waiting list, if you are going to cancel your table, please do it AS SOON AS YOU KNOW so that we can pull people from the waitlist and give them plenty of notice so they can make travel arrangements. Please email table updates, requests, and cancellations to pdxz...@gmail.com.

7. Other Upcoming Zine Events

* Jewish Zine Workshop led by our community zinester, Cheyenne! We'll get hands-on experience in each making a zine of our own. Join as we dabble in the art and culture of this underground and niche form of publication and explore how it ties to Jewish creativity. Refreshments will be served! (Tuesday May 6th at 7pm, Moishe House Portland, 3322 SE Brooklyn St, Portland, Oregon 97202)

If you'd like to contribute to a collective zine exploring Jewish creativity that will debut at this year's Portland Zine Symposium, please email writing/drawing/photography/and other submissions to chiddu...@gmail.com or visit Chiddush Zine on Facebook. 

* Symbology: Art Show and Premier of Annie Murphy's New Mega-Mini-Comic!: Join us to celebrate the premier of SYMBOLOGY (an A to Z of Archetypes and Epiphanies), a new "mega" mini-comic from Annie Murphy. Visit the gallery and enjoy a display of original works by the artist. Prints and books will be available for purchase. This event is free! Refreshments provided! The art show will run through May. @ Reading Frenzy, 3628 N. Mississippi Ave., Thursday May 8, 6-9pm