ABSOLUT VODKA and Dazed & Confused commissioned jotta to curate a self publishing exhibition and interactive installation: mapping and visualising Londoners’ thoughts about their city, at the inaugural Dazed Live festival, Saturday April 9 2011.
ABSOLUT VODKA and Dazed & Confused commissioned jotta to curate a self publishing exhibition and interactive installation: mapping and visualising Londoners’ thoughts about their city, at the inaugural Dazed Live festival, Saturday April 9 2011.
Curated and produced by jotta, this collaborative installation and exhibition was held at the central hub of the Dazed Live festival. Presented in collaboration with Absolut Vodka, it celebrated and explored the past, present and future of London's self-publishing community. Created exclusively for Dazed Live, the project delved into the world of self-publishing and visualised Londoner's cultural aspirations for their city.
The installation centred on a 'self-publishing interactive map', which was created by people posting inspirations about London via Twitter. Over the three days leading up to the festival, we asked you key questions about London over Facebook, Twitter and Tumblr. Encouraged to answer each question individually in a tweet - these answers then created a 'mind map', embodying the core and ethos of zine culture - as the expression of individual opinion. This ultimately formed a new ‘zine about London, providing a snapshot of the views and aspirations of culturally engaged Londoners.
The installation was made in collaboration with Midnight Toastie
The accompanying exhibition charted the history of this subversive form, as well as a jotta curated radio show focusing on its future - hosted by Ned Beaumen and with guests including Veronica So and Simon Whybray (LAN), Liam Young (Tomorrows Thoughts Today) and Alex Zamora (Fever Zine).
From the 60s underground magazine OZ and the punk fanzines of the 1970s, including Sniffin Glue, Jon Savage’s The Secret Public’ and Paul Morley’s ‘Girl Trouble’, to the London and New York mail art dialogue from VILE magazine and Ray Johnson, and zines that have evolved into publications such as ‘Sup and Art Rocker – the exhibition celebrated the best London zines of past and present, alongside a selection of iconic international titles. It also featured the first 3 issues of Dazed & Confused, which began life in ‘zine format, and still retains its DIY, independent ethos today.
