spectactor / research

The original zine I created was done in the Dr.Me workshop a few months ago. All of the resources and materials were totally random, but I put together pieces that had stunning and somewhat humbling views of nature on our planet.

To push this further I want to create an A4 counterpart to the zine, in the form of a higher quality glossy magazine. I feel like this would do the images justice and I can be experimental with the layouts of the images while having the safety of the computer to undo any mistakes.

For research, I have gathered photography books that specialise in nature that I can scan in and start creating collage-like layouts. I have over 100 scans of pages from 3 books - The Vanishing Plains of Africa, Heaven and Earth and Vanishing Landscapes. All of these books have images of nature that is barely touched by humans.

I also thought it would be appropriate to the nature of this brief to take a closer took at digital collage and zine making. This will help me create the best layouts and pay homage to the original collaged zine I created. Although they are two separate projects, they are linked by development and concept.

Zine Making

"Zines are self-published, small-circulation, often nonprofit books, papers, or websites. They usually deal with topics too controversial or niche for mainstream media, presented in an unpolished layout and unusual design."
"Zine-making isn’t about rules or knowledge; it’s about freedom and POWER."
- http://www.rookiemag.com/2012/05/how-to-make-a-zine/

There is no right or wrong way to create a zine. The whole point of a zine is a DIY, cheap project that spreads a message. Mainly using a photocopier to create several copies, zines have a very charming and rough-around-the-edges aesthetic. The magazine I want to create will have a similar feel, though the images will be scanned and digitally treated rather than cut out and stuck onto a page. (One reason for this is cost - photo copying and scanning over 100 images will build up).

Collage

"Collage is an easy, fast, and very satisfying mode of artistic expression. There are no hard and fast rules for making a collage: you can make a brilliant one out of two images or a thousand; out of flat or three-dimensional pieces; through analog or digital means"
- http://www.rookiemag.com/2012/03/collaging-for-beginners/

Collaging is the art of creating a new image out of a variety of other images. Cutting, sticking, ripping and folding can create interesting and unique textures to an otherwise flat design. For my project I will be creating these effects on Photoshop, so I will have use of other techniques, e.g. using blend modes, changing opacity and duplicating specific images.