From the Aug 28 – Sep 3, 2003 issue

Pullout

All You Need to Know About the Ink Spot

But Were Too Confused to Ask--Plus, What to See and When

by Christopher Frizzelle

In lieu of an opening paragraph that deftly explains the manifold edgy wonders sure to present themselves to you this year at Bumbershoot's Ink Spot--an ambitious resuscitation of the moribund Bumbershoot "book fair" of yore (better known to you as that dreary assemblage of chapbook-laden tables in the food court which resembled, in its artistry and energy, a morgue)--I offer, just so that we're all on the same page, a glossary. They're throwing around a lot of new words this year, notably:

artist-in-action n. Someone who does his or her art as you watch, or else you, doing your art as others watch. It is the doing that is operative, not the watching. An artist-in-action is making art on the spot. The watching only comes into play because while an artist-in-action is doing, there will likely be strangers milling around.

DIY adj. The abbreviation of do-it-yourself, it's also short for anything that looks like it was made at Kinko's.

ZAPP n. The Zine Archives & Publishing Project, a program of Richard Hugo House that collects, exhibits, and archives local zines.

zinester n. One who makes zines, buys zines, or is attracted to that certain aura that surrounds zines.

The Ink Spot is not so much a spot as a splat. Its offerings--all crammed into the Snoqualmie Room, adjacent to the literary stage (in the Alki Room)--include traditional booths for small presses (from festival mainstays like Black Heron Press and Wood Works, to Last Kiss Comics and dottyspecK, both of which are participating in the festival for the first time); artist-in-action stations featuring various artists, including you, in various actions; a ZAPP-produced visual exhibition showcasing the local history of zines in three categories (punk rock zines, mail art, and comics); a co-op through which independent zinesters can sell their DIY products (and where the Seattle Research Institute can hawk its dogma); workshops for zinesters, led by seasoned and honorary zinesters like Phoebe Gloeckner, Michelle Tea, and the people of Clamor magazine; a question-and-answer panel of local cartoonists, including Jim Woodring and Ellen Forney; and a workshop, delivered by the minds behind Clear Cut Press, about blackberries.

Blackberries? Matthew Stadler and Rich Jensen, said minds behind Clear Cut Press, are conceptually attracted to blackberries because blackberries--like the best and most interesting art (and the best and most interesting artists)--propagate in unexpected ways, are prolific, lack rigid root forms, thrive with indifference to their surroundings (be they natural or urban), possess an admirable heartiness, and provide a certain sweet reward. Clear Cut Press is a newly founded publisher of well-made softbound books, and its innovative publishing model is bolstered by a list of really smart authors, including Charles D'Ambrosio, Lisa Robertson, and Robert Glück. Stadler and Jensen will hold forth on the aforementioned topic (blackberries), with the aid of pictures and diagrams, on Sunday from 5 to 6 pm on the Ink Spot's workshop stage, in the Snoqualmie Room. You should attend.

Nor should you miss (to name but a few highlights):

Phoebe Gloeckner: Drawing with Brush and Ink & Considering the Fallacy of Truth Gloeckner's Diary of a Teenage Girl, part text and part graphic novel, raises issues relating to narration, expression, and genre-bending. Gloeckner's presentation promises to be practical and compelling, with plenty of DIY time. Ink Spot workshop stage, Snoqualmie Room, Friday, 1-2 pm.

Michelle Tea: It's All About Me--Memoir Writing and Zine Making The author of Valencia and The Chelsea Whistle leads a workshop on the pitfalls of memoir writing--a whole host of pathetic and very personal issues attend the form--and offers insight into how to write a memoir, or be a zinester, without losing all your friends. Ink Spot workshop stage, Snoqualmie Room, Friday, 5-6 pm.

Local Cartoonist Panel Greg Stump (Dwarf Attack) moderates a conversation between such local doodlers as Jim Woodring (The Frank Book), Roberta Gregory (A Bitch Is Born), Ellen Forney (I Was Seven in '75), Tatiana Gill (Midnight at the Oasis), Elijah Brubaker (Autobio), and Lin Lucas (Creepy Joe: Cages). Ink Spot stage, Snoqualmie Room, Sunday, 2-3 pm.

Adam Voith The publisher of the independent magazine Little Engines is also the author of Stand Up, Ernie Baxter: You're Dead, about a dead postal worker. Voith will read three letters, written by Ernie Baxter from heaven, that are not included in the novel (but will be included in the next Little Engines). The letters are addressed to entities such as the National Museum of Glass and Mr. Rogers. Ink Spot stage, Snoqualmie Room, Sunday, 4-4:20 pm.

frizzelle@thestranger.com