Thank you for considering my application for the ARTicipate Creation and Development Grant. I created a special ARTicipate Zine as part of my application, which I delivered/mailed to the Shenkman Arts Center. Please consider looking at my ARTicipate Zine Supporting Material first and additional past works are shown below.
The little book of Relationship Anarchy is a zine that reflects on the 9 pillars of Relationship Anarchy, a term coined by Sweden’s Andie Nordgren. This personal reflection (per-zine) delves into each pillar of Relationship Anarchy through a queer, Grey-Asexual lens and also speaks to my personal experience with intimate partner violence. The overarching message that this zine delivers is that Relationship Anarchy, although often misunderstood, is a healthy, compassionate and collaborative way of building all kinds of relationships in one’s life.
Night Terrors is a zine about my experience with Night Terrors, a severe form of Nightmares/Sleepwalking that occurs when I go to sleep after being overstimulated before bed. I also cover things to try if you experience night terrors, as well as what I do to take care of my mental health the following day.
Therapy is Radical Love is a zine about my experience in therapy and why it is one of the best things I have done for myself. In this zine, I speak about the different kinds of love I feel in therapy, including self-love and learning to love my difficult emotions.
The Homebody Series is a celebration of “coziness and introversion”. Each zine features recipes, book recommendations, new music to listen to and other cool things to enjoy at home when you need to rest.
All of my zines are hand made through collage. Each letter is individually cut out of old magazines and lovingly pasted into the small-press zine design. I have created over 30 different zines of various lengths, sizes and binding formats in the last year- and I have no plans of stopping this inspiring and often cathartic art form. Making zines has helped me heal from trauma, heartbreak, loss of friendship, family struggles and more. It is a pivotal part of my mental health “toolbox” and I love encouraging others to use zines as a creative and emotional outlet as well.
Thank you for considering my application and I hope you enjoyed learning about my special interest.
Laughing Radish 