What is a zine? Wikipedia defines a zine as a small circulation of self-published original work or appropriated text and images, usually reproduced by a photocopier. In the case of the Rutgers University Art Library, a zine has been used to grab patron’s attention to market collections and services.
In the Fall of 2019, I created the Art Library Zine as a limited run of 300 pocket flyers to educate Art(s) students about the Rutgers University Art Library. This zine was created using power-point software and printed in black and white on an 8.5 by 11 sheet of white paper. All 300 zines circulated in roughly 7 weeks and were distributed via my lobby office hours, a stack left in the Art Library, as well as given to students as an instruction take-away.
The Art Library Zine was discussed during a visual literacy workshop with Aresty students, and unexpectedly inspired a rich conversation among students from Mason Gross Art & Design “Artist’s book course”, who were assigned to make a zine using this fold. To learn more about the fold used for this project and how to make a zine out of a sheet of printer paper please view the following video on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ixqr9e3wCxI.
Assessment was captured in a variety of ways including number counts, video and still images, and comments received and over-heard. A few comments included “this is so cool, what a fantastic idea”, “I liked this brochure because it uses images and not a lot of text I won’t read”, and “this is a great guide, that fits in my wallet or a pocket in my backpack.”
In conclusion, the Art Library Zine is an affordable, unique, and fun way to educate Rutgers students, faculty, and staff about the Art Library, as well as inform individuals about the Sinclair Popular Culture collections found in Special Collections & University Archives.
If you have questions about this project please contact Megan Lotts, Art Librarian at megan.lotts@rutgers.edu.