Special Collections

On Thursday 11th April we went to Special Collections to view the assortment of Zines and prints that MMU had collected over the years. 

From this visit I saw how the culture of making Zine's had flourished in the movement of Punk Britain, with it's cut and paste, anti-establishment style.

Many of the themes of the Zine's from this era were focused on music and social change that may happen through making people aware of issues and informing them of certain events. One 

such event that interested me was Rock Against Racism, in Moss Side's Alexandra Park- featured in the zine, 'Temporary Hoarding '. After researching the event afterwards I found that it was a massive success with acts such as The Fall, Buzzcocks, and John Cooper Clarke. I also found that Temporary Hoarding was published for over 10 years- this displayed the impact that a Zine can have, and how a following can be made. 

I noticed that there was a wide range of materials, content and design that entered under the heading of a Zine. There seemed to be no uniformed look or design. Some were in the form of a hardback book, others a case for a CD, others a print of an illustration alongside a poem. 

Some were handmade with drawings and ink stamps and prints, and some had a sleek finish using photography and professional binding. 

From this visit I saw how broad the range of Zines can be in design, production and content.