ABOUT from VILLAGE on Vimeo.

More info here.

Sheffield Zine Fair, the first of its kind in the city, is organised by Katie Govier, a graduate in art who recently returned to South Yorkshire from London. Her love for zines grew in the self-publication fairs of the capital and she hopes to ‘create a more prominent zine community in Sheffield, an event where people can socialise, swap, meet others with similar interests and celebrate alternative publications.’

Publications to expect include poetry courtesy of Unquiet Desperation, some really intriguing cut up and collaged zines by Jean McEwan, and Chella Quint’s comical account of monthly cycles, ‘Adventures in Menstruating’. Following on nicely from their talk at Site Gallery’s DIY Summer last month, our good pals Rotherham Zine Library will be there with their collection, including a few back issues of Article. There’ll also be talks and workshops to get involved in, so head down and feel inspired to turn your zine-related dreams into reality.

The Mill Press, purveyors of beautifully laid out journals on themes like space and Switzerland, are bringing together the best of design, art and photography that side of the Pennines for the first Manchester Print Fair.

In attendance you can expect Manchester Modernist Society, a gathering of ‘urban enthusiasts, amateurs and latter day dandies’ who explore the region’s 20th century architecture and design, and who publish The Modernist magazine. There’ll also be Manchester based zine shop Good Grief!, Salford Illustration, and some beautifully put together visual storytelling by Mmopus Books.

Article favourites OWT Creative are putting it about a bit, with stalls at both the Sheffield and the Manchester fairs.

Sheffield Zine Fair runs from 11am to 6pm at Cafe Brezza on Wellington Street

Manchester Print Fair runs from 11am to 5pm at Night & Day Cafe on Oldham Street

DIY Summer at Site pulls together all sorts of creative talent, hosting workshops, events, talks and parties from 23 August – 7 September, so summers-end is no longer a drag but a makeshift, experimental, cultivating, insightful and artistic splurge! [[Show as slideshow]]

The cool, neat paintings of Sarah Abbott (who we interviewed earlier this year) have begun to take over the main gallery wall and front gallery windows. She celebrates the brilliance of traditional hand sign painting and is forming a map of sorts which will track the ideas, collaborations and contributions to DIY Summer, a sweet approach to recording progress.

Article attended the launch party last night and flicked through a myriad of zines, courtesy of Rotherham Zine Library which has been relocated to the gallery in Sheffield, becoming more comprehensive day by day. Zine subjects ranging from ‘Sugar Paper; 20 things to make and do’ to ‘The Hare’ to ‘Bido Lito’ to very early issues of Article Magazine. These are all for browsing and there are more available to buy. This showcase is a sufficient catalyst to make anyone grab paper, scissors, compile something together and do a budget print run no matter how odd their topic/obsession. The odder the better!

Band Real Fur had the live music slot of the night. They have a tendency to shoehorn audiences into launderettes and other unlikely haunts. They were perfectly summery and jaunty for the occasion, sticking with their preference for spaces not built for gigs but perfectly befitting the moment – appropriately diy.

The programme is jam packed and we recommend a look into the whole deal. Download their programme, and put a stopper to any late-summer lethargy! Galleries tend to go quiet in August and Site Gallery is offering to keep our brains engaged.

Here’s a shortlist!:

• T-Shirt Screen Printing workshops
• ‘Crocolage’ – collage, paint and fire a mug, cereal bowl and plate
• Make a DIY Couture cape
• Zine talks
• Book launch
• Tree-rubbing workshops with Sheffield Publicity Department
• Audacious Art Experiment gigs
• Screeenadelica gig poster exhibition
• Collage Party and collage the front of the Site Gallery building!

DIY Summer at Site from 23 August – 7 September

Site Gallery,  1 Brown Street, Sheffield S1 2BS

Scouring archives and the internet, those behind Amazing Future offer a strange, wonderful cross section of suprising, nostalgic, sci-fi , cutting edge material. It has itself become an archive devoted to wonder and varied phenomena and there is little chance you will find it uninteresting.

From levitation to bears on bikes to architectural structures which surely cannot hold up, to the naturally astounding and the artificially absurd.

They picked out this video by Joakim on Tigersushi Records. Perfectly mirroring Amazing Future in terms of collaging disparate ideas, pictures and moving images from volcanoes to beautiful girls smoking, typical of Joakim’s tendancy towards eclectic compilations.

Joakim – Forever Young (Official Video) from TIGERSUSHI on Vimeo.

See Amazing Future, today!

Jane Faram

Everything You Always Wanted to Know About Nicolas Cage (But were too afraid to ask) is here to alter such adverse reactions. It claims to be ‘a work of propaganda’, and, well, I’ve seen the light.

That wasn’t over acting I was whinging about in blind ignorance, that was abstract art. That geographically questionable accent doesn’t belie a mistaken choice in career or wilfulness on Cage’s part, that was ‘Nouveau Shamanic’.

The zine is a proper cut and paste labour of love: 62 pages photocopied and put together by one fan’s hand, complete with sonnet, illustrations, and a fold-out chart, listing his films according to categories like ‘good performances in otherwise totally unjustifiable projects’ and ‘unnecessary remakes of German Arthouse films’.

Email [email protected] if you’re ready to be indoctrinated.

World famous graffiti artist / musician / fly paster / illustrator / designer, invites us to a theatrical experience of the Kid Acne archive, of sorts. His true archive is too vast and varied to fit in the gallery. In this space we’re inspired to become characters ourselves like the ‘Stabby Women’, coming to life in his new film bearing swords and striding determinedly through darkened forests. They play out something of how this accomplished artist works, how he’s come to exhibit in this way, to this scale, and on his terms.

Kill Your Darlings i.e. be ruthless and remove your cherished characters from the story if non-essential. Do you really believe in this, as an artist?

Yes I do. As much as people love to see honesty, conviction and integrity in an artist – there’s a fine line between these and self-indulgance. I’ve never been a fan of lengthy guitar solos for example. I’d rather hear a 2 minute song full of energy than watch someone fret-wanking for 2 minutes in the middle of a half hour opus – no matter how amazing they are at playing the guitar. I feel the same about overly technical scratch-DJ’s, just play the record and let people dance! It’s much the same in putting together a show. How much is too much and what do people really want to see? I’ve worked alongside Millennium Gallery and design practice, Peter & Paul to curate this exhibition and  feel that together, we’ve made the right choices. There’s a lot of work in the show, but it’s considered and presented in a digestible way.

Which darlings have you killed for the Millennium Gallery exhibition?

Many. I’ve been losing my religion. For me, this exhibition has been more of a chance to look backwards, in order to move forwards. It’s a purge in many ways. My first solo exhibition in Sheffield, my first show in a museum and my first ‘retrospective’ of sorts. It’s all downhill from here.

In recent work you have taken to sculpture. This exhibition includes a séance installation and miniature totem pole, both historically expressing kinships and cultural beliefs. So is this your ultimate nod to classic Kid Acne characters, each now somewhat archetypal?

It’s more to do with the fact that I know what my characters look like in 2D now because I’ve been drawing them for years, so there’s really no surprises anymore. Although illustration is the starting point for all of my work and I love to draw first and foremost, I’m becoming more interested in how my characters look in 3D, film and animation. It’s a good excuse to collaborate with other people and means I won’t get bored or lonely.

Film work – tell us about the short film which is installed in the exhibition (and what makes a Stabby Woman?)

I used to make edited-in-camera super 8 films as a teenager, but never really pursued it. The only other film stuff I’ve done has been the music videos, which were all pretty hit and miss to be honest. I’ve wanted to make a Stabby Women film for ages and this is it’s first outing. It’s a collaboration with director, Dscreet and musician, Cherrystones. What’s in the exhibition is an edit on loop and for me, it’s very much a work in progress and something I’m keen to develop further. Stabby Women are somewhere between a cult and a tribe. They’re enigmatic, powerful and have a belief system, which seems to combine freemasonry, paganism and the occult. In short, they’re a feisty bunch.

You allude to religious rituals, obscure sex toys, séances, mythology. How do you settle on source material like this?

Google image search works for me.

Your work has evolved from experimental graffiti and rap in your youth to the ability to be recognised simply by signature sprayed murals of hair. How have you tackled this exhibition as a retrospective and at the same time, a forward thinking presentation?

Nothing has really changed since I started painting graffiti 20 years ago. It’s all part of the same thing and it’s constantly evolving as a body of work. I was never really bothered about ‘keeping it real’ or having a misplaced loyalty to others. I’ve always been interested in what’s on the periphery of the scene and have always been inspired by the artists who’ve carved out their own niche and done things on their own terms. The only rule I did pay attention to was “don’t bite”, meaning don’t plagiarise, so having a recognisable style has always been important to me. It’s not about being the biggest or the best, but about being yourself and doing things your own way.

What is your ultimate slogan?

THERE GOES THE NEIGHBOURHOOD

Kid Acne: ‘Kill Your Darlings’ at Millennium Gallery, Sheffield from 21 July – 23 October 2011

Interview by Jane Faram. Photographs courtesy of Sven Davis, Kid Acne and Stefan Willhoit.

A poem on the evolving revelation of coming out, dogs playing connect four, we are definitely going to start collecting these little gems of quarterly publication.

Version two of Eleven Design’s Sheffield guide book Our Favourite Places is out now. Including 75 places, such as restaurants, bars, shops and pubs, the brochure sized book reveals the best spots in Sheffield. It’s a fun idea, letting designers and ‘creative types’ share what they like about the city they live in. Generally a tasteful bunch, you can rest assured that there are no Wetherspoons or chain stores in here.

As you might expect, it’s nicely laid out and features all original photography from around Sheffield. There are plenty of surprises in it too. If you are thinking of visiting Sheffield any time soon, or you live here, Our Favourite Places is well worth picking up, and it’s only 4 quid.

For inspiration, Nottingham has ‘Looking for Trouble’, a pulling together of painted and drawn work by upcoming contemporary illustrators. Now open in the Malt Cross building as part of NotLost festival, a new citywide creative fest which will continue to expand as numerous shows and events launch throughout July. Paired up with Zine Fayre’s, the shows curator Amy Blackwell, who is an illustrator herself, is tipping her hat to the eccentric and loveable work of fellow illustrators in the North. It’s quite difficult to see this kind of work and not feel compelled to dig out your old tin of watercolours – illustrative work is not necessarily about drawing perfectly!

NotLost opened June 30th and the closing events aren’t until July 23rd so there’s plenty of time to catch something. Keep an eye on the Article website for further picks from this summers calendar to keep you busy and happy!

Jane Faram