Featured here are selected highlights from yesterday's 2020 Sticky Institute Festival of the Photocopier Zine Fair. For the first time - and hopefully not the last - the event was held at the historic Meat Market in North Melbourne.
The Meat Market and surrounding area area hold many memories for me. In the 1980s, I worked for a couple of years as an administrative assistant at the Print Council of Australia. During that time, the Print Council established a gallery and office in North Melbourne after their original base in Collins Street was demolished. Subsequently, the PCA moved into an office at the Meat Market, where they remained for some years before relocating to their current office in Fitzroy.
Shane and I drove to the Meat Market from Ballarat. We were a little early and had an opportunity to see inside this magnificent building shortly before the hoards of stall holders and zine fans arrived.
In recent years, all exhibitors, apart from zine distros, have been allotted a half table, owing to the sheer number of zinesters requiring stalls. This year there were over 450 stallholders over the two days that the zine fair was held. Andrew Pilkington, pictured below, shared a table with me. I couldn't have wished for a more convivial neighbour and thought his zines were terrific. In fact, his first sale of the day was to me - and vice versa.
I was doubly blessed with zine stall neighbours because on the table to our right were our good friends Gracia Haby and Louise Jennison (centre and right). To their left are Gracia's parents, Elaine and Peter Haby.
There was a sensational turnout and the entire affair ran like clockwork. As always, we could only marvel at Sticky Institute's peerless organisational skills.
After spotting the splendid George Costanza tee shirt sported by a zine fan (below, centre) Andrew and I discovered we share a mutual enthusiasm for the legendary TV sitcom, Seinfeld.
Thank you, Sticky and the Meat Market for having us, and warmest thanks to all who stopped by the Moth Woman Press stall and helped me raise funds for Wildlife Victoria's Victorian Bushfire Appeal.
At the day's end, it was announced that Sticky hope to hold the 2021 Festival of the Photocopier in the same venue. My fingers are firmly crossed.
