Know What You Mean...(IKWYM) was a hybrid demo, zine portfolio exchange and collaborative event that took place during the 2022 MidAmerica Print Council Conference, co-organized by Sage Perrott and Edie Overturf. The goal of this event was to create an environment where conversation and creation happen in tandem. Unlike a classic print portfolio, where each artist works individually in their studio to create an edition of prints, this event style portfolio allowed active interaction while the content is being generated.

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To our great excitement and relief, IKWYM was extraordinarily well received. Many conference goers expressed that the event was exactly what they needed at their first conference since the pandemic lock downs. For some, it was the first time they were creating in tandem with friends and colleagues in person for over two years. ​So many conference attendees brought their reactions to the prompts genuinely, and we want to honor that with this presentation of this website as a virtual final product.

 

The event was so well attended that the organizers had to recalibrate. The printmaking community really showed up, and we had so many participants create drawings that the intended culmination of this project - a volume of zines - took us a bit longer to finish than anticipated. We were able to complete some of the printing and collation during the conference event. However, a good portion of the work of risograph printing, collating and stapling, and distribution needed to happen after the event itself and at a couple different locations. As a result of this post-event production, some of the cover impressions, colors of the zines, and methods of construction may vary. It’s our hope that slight or even noticeable differences will be embraced as charming quirks of an unusual artifact from an unusual event. 

 

Sage and Edie want to stress that the zines as physical objects are just a part of the project. The experiences that were had at the conference, the intangible elements, are just as much a part of the portfolio. 

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We would like to wholeheartedly thank all parties involved in the event- from our Zine Leaders, to the conference participants, to the MAPC organizers and hosts, and the volunteers. We would like to emphasize how important our Zine Leaders were in the success of this event, for not only being excited participants/collaborators and organizers, but also for taking a chance on a seemingly  ever evolving hybrid event. We would like to additionally thank all the folks who came to the event, brought an open mind, and trusted us to take their drawings and meld them into an artifact from this improvisational drawing and zine making event. Finally, we would like to recognize and extend gratitude to MAPC organizers, Taryn McMahon, Leigh Garcia, Brittany Gorelick, and Boyce Bivens for all your support, preparation, and essential assistance leading up to and during the actual event.

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We are excited to announce that the portfolio of zines has been placed in the following archives and libraries:

• MAPC archive 

• Kent State Print Media collection 

• Independent Publishers Resource Center, Portland OR

• University of Minnesota Twin Cities, Gorman Rare Art Books Library,  Marshall Weber Culture Wars Zine Collection.

• Bowes Art & Architecture Library- Stanford University, Lindsay King

• Bancroft Library- UC Berkeley, Amelia Grounds

• Ohio university special collections- Alden Library

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