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Guide to the Japanese Women's Contemporary Artist Zines
H.Mss.1026  
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Collection Details
 
Table of contents What's This?
  • Descriptive Summary
  • Administrative Information
  • Scope and Contents of the Collection
  • Organization and Arrangement
  • Indexing Terms

  • Descriptive Summary

    Title: Japanese Women's Contemporary Artist Zines
    Date (inclusive): 2005-2011
    Date (bulk): 2009-2011
    Collection number: H.Mss.1026
    Extent: 6 boxes
    Contributing Institution: Claremont Colleges. Library. Special Collections, Honnold/Mudd Library
    Abstract: Collection of 124 zines, all created by young female Japanese artists. These publications represent the entire output of the "Feminine" show - an exhibition of zines curated by Tokyo store Zine's Mate, presented exclusively at the 2011 New York Art Book Fair. This collection reflects an important trend in underground print publishing among young women in Japan, and captures the zeitgeist of an exploding cultural phenomenon.
    Physical location: Please consult repository.
    Language of materials: Languages represented in the collection: English and Japanese as well as a variety of other languages including French, German, Thai to name a few.

    Administrative Information

    Access

    This collection is open for research.

    Publication Rights

    All requests for permission to reproduce or to publish must be submitted in writing to Special Collections.

    Preferred Citation

    [Identification of item], Japanese Women's Contemporary Artist Zines (H.Mss.1016). Special Collections, Honnold/Mudd Library, Claremont University Consortium.

    Source of Acquisition

    Purchased; 2013.

    Accruals

    No additions to the collection are anticipated.

    Processing Information

    All zines are new and in excellent condition. Some had never been opened, and were still wrapped in their original packaging, while the majority was contained in cellophane bags. Any packaging material, including cellophane bags, determined to be non-archival was discarded. Items consisting of multiple parts were placed in archival envelopes. Most items were placed in folders individually, except where items were small enough to be placed in individual envelopes with 2 or 3 envelopes per folder. Items laid in were left in place. Photographs were sleeved in mylar and put back in their original location.

    Scope and Contents of the Collection

    Collection of 124 zines, all created by young female Japanese artists. These publications represent the entire output of the "Feminine" show - an exhibition of zines curated by Tokyo store Zine's Mate, presented exclusively at the 2011 New York Art Book Fair.
    These artist publications utilize a wide variety of production techniques - ranging from black-and-white offset to full-color process - in various sizes and formats. A wide range of artist mediums are represented, including illustration, lettering, photography and handcraft. Many zines included are produced in very limited editions of 100 or less. Some zines include an incredible assortment of realia and found objects.
    Often written in both English and Japanese, many of the zines reflect a heavy Western influence, with artistic and semantic interpretations of English language. Some feature the use of pejorative words commonly directed at women, evoking similar statements that originated in 1990s American underground Riot Grrrl fanzines. Those zines are often credited with popularizing what has now become known as "third wave feminism," and these Japanese zines could be viewed comparatively to the spirit of the Riot Grrrl movement.

    Organization and Arrangement

    The collection is arranged alphabetically by artist’s last name and then alphabetically by title of work.

    Indexing Terms

    The following terms have been used to index the description of this collection in the library’s online public access catalog.
    Criticism
    Critiques
    Feminism
    Gender
    Harajuku (Tokyo, Japan) - Social life and customs
    Harajuku girls
    Photography
    Popular culture
    Riot grrrl movement
    Satire
    Transvestism
    Underground periodicals
    Women
    Women artists
    Women authors, Japanese
    Women in art
    Young women
    Zines