Christopher Kardambikis, associate professor in the School of Art, was recently named the Fenwick Fellow award recipient for 2023-24. Kardambikis’ research project, Documenting a Quarter Century of Small-Press and DIY Publishing in the United States, will collect interviews with people who are or were engaged in small-press or independent publishing projects across the country, focusing on individuals who can speak to specific local publishing scenes and describe how these scenes developed since the year 2000.
“I’m looking forward to working with everyone at the Fenwick Library to further study DIY publishing and zines. This specific geographic area has such a rich history of zines, woven through the music, political, and art worlds, and being able to trace some of the connections between here and the rest of the country is a goal of the project,” he said.
“These publications served various purposes and diverse communities in specific time periods. Projects considered small press, independent, do-it-yourself, or community based are often hard to define and their resistance to definition is often the point. Focusing on the period after 2000, allows us to understand how the small press, and the communities served, continue to deal with a rapidly changing publishing and media landscape throughout any number of challenges that have directly impacted our current student body,” Kardambikis said.
With the data he collects, Dr. Kardambikis plans to create an interactive map and index of small-press and independent arts publishers in the United States active between the years 2000 and the present. He will also create a collection of the zines, books, and publication projects created by the artists and publishers participating in the interviews that can then become part of the Special Collections Research Center at Fenwick Library.
“The Libraries are incredibly excited to partner with Dr. Kardambikis on this project through the Fenwick Fellowship program,” said Anne Osterman, interim dean of University Libraries. “ Kardambikis’ work is an excellent example of how researchers can make the best use of the Libraries’ varied resources, as it will involve working with our Digital Scholarship Center, Mason Publishing Group, and Special Collections Research Center.”
Kardambikis will present the outcomes of this project at a future Fenwick Fellow Lecture hosted by the University Libraries. Learn about the Fenwick Fellow program and current and past projects here.