Chaffey College Presents Zine Exhibition 'Reading Room'

Hundreds of zines, comic books and other publications will be presented during Chaffey College’s first exhibition for fall, “Reading Room: Zines, Comix, and Other Radical Texts.”

The event, which will also include an artist’s reception and numerous workshops, opens Sept. 3 and runs through Nov. 16.

The Wignall Museum of Contemporary Art has hosted numerous workshops and other events focused on zines, but it is the first exhibition dedicated to the genre. Zines have long been an outlet for marginalized and other communities to communicate and express themselves without the barriers associated with traditional publishing.

“It allows us to experience and understand other people’s perspectives and it allows our community to have their voices heard, to participate and get involved in the zine culture, which is very accessible, welcoming and diverse,” said Wignall Museum Director Rebecca Trawick.

Eight artists and four local arts organizations will present their publications and other work for the exhibition.

Organizations include Birdcage Comics Café/Birdcage Bottom Books, run by married Chaffey College alumni Camille Alaras-Whitfield and Daniel Whitfield in San Bernardino, as well as Tierra del Sol of Upland, a nonprofit organization providing support to people with disabilities.

Mark Todd and Esther Pearl Watson – known together as “Funchicken” – will present an interactive art installation full of zines and other creations. The structure is made of cardboard and recycled materials, Trawick said. The couple are authors and illustrators of the 2006 book “Whatcha Mean, What’s a Zine?”

“For me, it’s a bit reminiscent of the blanket forts my siblings and I would create when we were kids,” Trawick said. Viewers are invited to walk in Funchicken’s installation.”

Maryland artist Kumasi J. Barnett will present his work, which is classic comic book covers that have been imbued with modern social consciousness. He repaints or reimagines with paint the narratives of the books into critiques about police brutality, racial profiling and more.

Chaffey College professors plan to incorporate the exhibition into their curriculum.

The event was made possible through grant funding from California Humanities, a state affiliate of the National Endowment of the Humanities.