Overview 

The Houston (and broader Texas) zine scene has exploded in recent years, with record attendance to zine specific festivals. AIGA Houston, and our members, have tabled at Zine Fest Houston (ZFH) and debuted 2 zines: “AIGA Houston Archive” and “Creativity Lives Here.” As interest in zine-making and culture grows, we want to provide a helpful guide to serve as a starting point to support our members and the broader design community to find their footing in the Texas zine scene. To learn more about what a zine is and their history check out the Wikipedia page for “zines.”

How do I find zine communities and festivals? 

Last fall, in anticipation of Zine Fest Houston, AIGA Houston held a guided zine event at one of our free monthly meetups. The event sparked organic conversations among creatives, and attendees were encouraged to continue fueling their interest in zine-making by visiting our table at the upcoming 2023 Zine Fest Houston. 

For our creative community, we recommend attending or tabling at the following events in Texas: 

• Zine Fest Houston: ZFH holds an annual festival in late fall with smaller events throughout the year. Stop by the AIGA Houston table to say hi!
• UH Zine Week: UH Zine Week is a series of zine-related events that are open to University of Houston students, affiliates, and friends.
• Lone Star Zine Fest: LSZF, the largest zine festival in Austin, is hosted by Austin Zine Friends. 
• San Antonio Zine Fest: SAZF returned in 2023 after a digital hiatus and continues to be a destination for community and connection.
• Uncle Bob’s Photo Zine Market: Flats has brought back their zine fest, focused entirely on photo zines! This is a great event to attend or participate in if your creative discipline is photography.

AIGA Houston’s 2023 Zine

Our zines are a celebration of our broad Houston creative community. Our 2023 zine, titled “Creativity Lives Here,” was a collaborative labor of love. Contributors include Melton Bell III, Hugo Jimenez, Dani Newman, Tracy Ngo, Priya Ramkissoon, Camila Ruiz and Sabrina Smith. The zine also includes a quote from former AIGA Houston board member, Jo Skillman’s manifesto Creativity Lives Here that functioned as our guiding star as we celebrated our 25th anniversary.

We are incredibly proud to be part of a city with such vibrance and originality, and our work is intended to facilitate connections between talented designers and celebrate the incredible work that Houston creatives share. 

Inside Peak of “Creativity Lives Here” Chapter Zine

Stop by the next Zine Fest Houston to say hello and purchase a print copy.