Inky Fingers Workshop: Rebel Zine 11 - ‘Facing Exeter’

Rebel Zine is an imprint dedicated to publishing the thoughts, dreams and expressions of the people who live, work and play in the city of Exeter. It has published 10 zines to date.

This next iteration focuses on how participants perceive the potential of the citizenry and city of Exeter, starting from their current viewpoints and informed by positive stories and examples, including those from other places in the world. The capacity for change that the city holds, through its population, will be a major aspect - where might it be 5 or 10 years? What could the city become known or even famous for?

Across 5 artist-led workshops, Inky Fingers invited people who live in Exeter to think about what the future here might look like. For each session, the approach, form and format was different, providing multiple ways in which participants could engage with the ideas. 50 people took part across the programme, representing different cultures, abilities and generations.

This project was also intended to give the artists an opportunity to work with larger participant groups, to shape work thematically and to prepare separated designs for RISO printing. It represented a step-change for the Rebel Zine imprint, bringing it to new audiences and hopefully new partners.

The result was a wonderfully bright, curated, collated zine that brought together creations from across all the workshops. The project demonstrated that people are really interested in being a part of visioning new futures, and Inky Fingers have since been approached to work with another organisation and to support their participants in a similar way. Inky Fingers has updated its website to include a downloadable pdf version of the printed zine: https://inkyfingersworkshop.wordpress.com/facing-exeter-project/

This project was the most complex print activity that Inky Fingers has been a part of, and involved a step-change in how they run projects. It has increased the fan base of The Rebel Zine imprint, so the team will use it as a way of opening doors, starting conversations and even applying for funding in partnerships.

To date, a copy has gone to Ljubljana, Slovenia; a number of copies are going to Da Nang in Vietnam; and a copy is appearing in the International Art Book & Zine Exhibition in Vienna, Austria in May. (@fanzineiestvienna on instagram)