Timeline of Zines & Architecture Publication

I presented this timeline for the first time in my “Architecture Print is Dead, Long Live Architecture Print!” exhibition at the First Tehran Architecture Biennial; running from May 12 until July 13, 2016.

1926

Hugo Gernsback published “Amazing Stories” in New York. It was the first magazine devoted solely to science fiction. In “Amazing Stories” he allowed for a large letter column which printed reader's addresses. By 1927, readers, often young adults, would write to each other, bypassing the magazines.

Hugo Gernsback

Sovremennaya Arkhitektura (Modern Architecture) was a journal published by the Constructivists from 1926-1930.The journal was edited by Moisei Ginzburg and the Vesnin brothers, until Roman Khiger took over in 1928. It was the leading architectural avantgarde journal in the USSR. Le Corbusier, Kasimir Malevich and Alexander Rodchenko were among its contributors.

Sovremennaya Arkhitektura

The first issue of the bauhaus magazine was published in December 1926 to coincide with the opening of the Bauhaus building in Dessau. It reported on events in Dessau and important modern trends. Walter Gropius, László Moholy-Nagy, Ernst Kallai and Hannes Meyer contributed to the magazine as editors. The authors included Paul Klee, Wassily Kandinsky, Marcel Breuer, Ludwig Hilberseimer and many others.

bahaus magazine

1930

The first issue of “The Comet” was published in the US. It is widely acknowledged as being the first science fiction fanzine ever published. It was edited by Raymond Arthur Palmer and published by the Science Correspondence Club. As the name of the publisher suggests, it has its origins in correspondence between science fiction fans. Many other science fiction zines followed in the wake of The Comet.

The 1st issue of “The Comet”

1940

Louis Russell Chauvenet coined the term “fanzine”from the combination of fan and magazine. Before that, such magazines were called “fanmags”.

1945

The word “zine” appears for the first time, in the magazine ‘Startling Stories’.  

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As the counterculture and the social movements of 1960’s emerged, the mainstream media missed, ignored, and/or confused the story. As a result, the youth who wanted to be a part of the psychedelic culture, or who wanted to learn about the protests and rallies, or who wanted to read about rock and underground music and the emerging pop culture, had to go to the alternative/underground press.

1960s also witnessed a wave of avant-gardism in architecture. Many radical movements, groups and figures emerged; such as the metabolism movement, Archigram, Superstudio, ideas of Buckminster Fuller, writings of Reyner Banham and many social-urban movements. This spirit was totally reflected in the alternative - elite - publication of the time.

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1961

Archigram began its life as a magazine produced at home by the members of the group, showing experimental work to a growing, global audience. Nine (and a half) seminal, individually designed, hugely influential magazines were produced between 1961 and 1974. The last ‘half’ was an update on the group’s office work rather than a ‘full’ Archigram magazine. 

ARCHIGRAM issue 3

1965

Aspen was launched by Phyllis Johnson. It was a magazine in a box filled with booklets, vinyls, posters, postcards and reels of super-8 movie film. Many of the leading figures in contemporary art and cultural criticism - such as Andy Warhol - were contributors to Aspen. By such an approach, the artist-produced magazine came to function as an “alternative space” for artistic expression and discourse.

Aspen

"Bau" was an Austrian avant-garde magazine; a platform for politically conscious, technologically infused, and satirical ideas on architecture. All this was to be reinforced not just by the magazine’s ground-breaking graphic design, but also by its editorial approach, perhaps best expressed by the claim that “everything is architecture.” It was run by Sokratis Dimitriou, Hans Hollein, Walter Pichler, Günther Feuerstein, Gustav Peichl and Oswald Oberhuber.

Bau issue 1/2 "Everything is Architecture"

1967

OZ magazine, that was launched in Sydney in 1963 under the general editorship of Richard Neville, moved to London and became the underground press of the “psychedelic hippy” scene. Its art and graphic design - by Martin Sharp - was also definitive. In the same year, “Open City” begins with a relatively similar approach in Los Angeles.It had a column by Charles Bukowski.

Cover of the 3rd issue of OZ London

OZ. We've got nothing to hide.

Utopie, “revue de sociologie de l’urbain” (review of urban sociology) first appeared in May 1967. Hubert Tonka was the managing editor.He edited and promoted collections of Jean Baudrillard’s essays, helping to draw the attention of the public to his views about urbanism and sociology.

The 1st issue of utopie

1970

The first assembling publication made up of multiple submissions from contributors, in the US, edited by Richard Kostelanetz and Henry Korn, was called “Assembling”. Kostelanetz theorizes this new approach and suggests that Assemblings completely invert the prerogative of editorial authority, and represent a decisive shift in the role of the editor to that of collator or compiler.

1973

Oppositions was an architectural journal produced by the “Institute for Architecture and Urban Studies” from 1973 to 1984. It was a platform for advancing architectural theory and many of its contributors became distinguished figures in the field of architecture. Among them were Peter Eisenman, Kenneth Frampton, Aldo Rossi, Colin Rowe, Denise Scott Brown and Bernard Tschumi.

OPPOSITIONS Journal

1976

In the wake of Punk music and its subculture, a new wave of fanzines appeared. These fanzines were published mostly by xerography and without any pretensions of professionalism. They shaped a culture of self reliance and DIY aesthetics. “Sniffin’ Glue” - a highly influential fanzine - was launched in this year by Mark Perry.

Sniffin' Glue

1977

From this year until 1993, Charles Jencks became an important influence on the editorial direction of AD (originally launched in 1930), writing and editing issues but also proposing themes, architects and contributors. This put the magazine at the center of debates in architecture, covering every mutation of style and trend, most notably Postmodernism, Classicism and Deconstruction. AD became the dominant voice of the era.

AD issues from 1977-78

1982

Factsheet Five was founded by Mike Gunderloy. It was a comprehensive guide to zines and alternative publications. Each issue was packed with reviews of independent, DIY and unusual publications. Factsheet Five cataloged and reviewed zines – complete with price, critical reviews, and ordering information. Additionally, it included informative articles on zine culture, independent publishing, lively columns, interviews with self-publishers, and an extensive news section.

___________

1990s saw the boom of indie culture and indie music was at its peak. It obtained more personal aspects and just before the outbreak of the online world, the importance of self expression (no matter how weird one is) became already emphasized. What happened next - with the internet - was a catalyst.

loud paper vol. 1 issue 1.
One of the architecture zines
from 1990s that challenged the
conventional architecture publication
by crossing architecture with music,
politics and pop-culture.

The cover art of 'In The Aeroplane Over The Sea'
by Neutral Milk Hotel. Released in 1998, a true
icon of the DIY/indie/lo-fi culture, that has
become a cult eversince.

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Today

Many new indie titles are emerging, and numerous services have become available to help foster this growing scene; services that collect these magazines and connect the readers with them and send them to the subscribers. These magazines are “oeuvres” in themselves and are a unique platform for the creative artists, illustrators, photographers and writers, as well as a worthy piece for the collections of the interested readers. This is the era of high-quality DIY press!

Little White Lies. No. 64.
"The world's smartest movie magazine."

Delayed Gratification. issue 21.
Slow Journalism Magazine

In the world of architecture, cities and the built environment, there has been a nearly recent marriage between “zine culture” and the rich heritage of “alternative architectural publication”. While the mainstream platform for fast architectural debate, journalism, writing and criticism has gone online, many indie and small paper-based publications are emerging here and there. They create a new space for alternative architectural discourse, in a visually expressive, beautiful and slower medium. This is the young voice of architecture!

Some of the indie architecture magazines
featured in the exhibition "Architecture
Print Is Dead, Long Live Architecture Print!"
in the 1st Tehran Architecture Biennial. 2016

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The outbreak of the internet, social networks and - generally - the digital media has become the best asset to the indie world. From finding contributors, suppliers and readers, just about every aspect of doing an indie magazine has been made easier. And in the meantime, the way we use printed magazines might have changed – nowadays it’s less about fast distribution of information and more about creating collectible, aesthetic objects.

As with many other domains, popular culture is being more integrated with architecture too. Finding creative and effective ways to understand and absorb it is an important task to do today. Dogmatic architectural elitism is no longer possible.

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