Home > Our Projects > Exploring Futures of Care > Queer Zines of Care on the Kent Coast
A colourful image of a black queer trans person in black rimmed glasses waving an LGBTQ+ rainbow flag whilst sitting on some rocks in front of greenery. The sky is has pink tones and the person is looking upwards.
Queer Coastal Zines of Care by People United

Queer Zines of Care on the Kent Coast

As part of our larger collaborative multi-arts programme of work Futures of Care, Queer Zines of Care on the Kent Coast invited perspectives from queer zine makers in the coastal areas of East Kent. Three artists were commissioned by People United to each create a zine embodying the intersection between their coastal town, queerness and care.

Produced in partnership with Creative Estuary.
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The idea for the Queer Zines of Care co-commission came from People United’s Creative Programmes Producer Dre Spisto, who found that encountering similar zines in a local shop when they first moved to the Kent coast had an especially positive effect and provided a sense of community.

In August 2022 we shared an open call for applications from queer artists based in coastal areas of Kent, asking applicants to outline zine ideas that included the topic of radical care as it applied to them, in the context of being a queer person in coastal Kent. Following the call out, three artists were chosen to develop their ideas into zines, recieving funding for their time and materials and with support and guidance from People United as they did so.

 

Meet our three commissioned artists

A black and white picture of picture of a white man with a moustache and beard covering his eye with his finger. The man is wearing a black t-shirt with a drawing of a sausage dog in a hotdog bun. On the picture the logo of people united is on the bottom left-hand side and the words Queer Zines of Care on the Kent Coast are written on the side in white writing.
Queer Zines of Care on the Kent Coast by People United
A colourful image of a black queer trans person in black rimmed glasses waving an LGBTQ+ rainbow flag whilst sitting on some rocks in front of greenery. The sky has pink tones, and the person is looking upwards. On the picture the logo of people united is on the bottom left-hand side and the words Queer Zines of Care on the Kent Coast are written on the side in white writing.
Queer Zines of Care on the Kent Coast by People United
A white non-binary person is standing on the shore of a beach, we can see sand and a calm see behind them. They are wearing a black bathing suit and grey shorts and they are smiling. On the picture the logo of people united is on the bottom left-hand side and the words Queer Zines of Care on the Kent Coast are written on the side in white writing.
Queer Zines of Care on the Kent Coast by People United

Bob Chicalors

Bob Chicalors has been making zines since 1997, from earnest teen indie music wannabe journalist to actual gay journalist and back again. He wrote the Margate queer zine ‘Rumours’ from 2015 – 2019, and recently wrote about the complete novels of Gary Indiana while recovering from Covid in Dover (the latest place he calls home).

he/him, @bobchicalors

Ray Felix Carter

Ray Felix Carter is a Black, genderqueer, autistic artist-entity from Seabrook, just outside of Folkestone. Ray has an interest in undefinable spaces; queerness, messiness, trans joy, and freedom from neurotypical nonsense. They love to make zines, draw, paint, collage and write poetry. They also love swimming in the sea, playing the flute and spending time in nature.

they/them or he/him, @rayfelixcarter

Greta Sharp

Greta Sharp is a non-binary, queer, disabled writer, artist, and zinester based in Margate, Kent. They run zine making workshops locally and attend and table at various zine fairs around the UK. They are the co-founder of Margate Zine Fair, a local zine and self-publishing fair celebrating local creatives and DIY forms of publishing, and are the assistant curator for Margate Pride and co-curate the Pride Art Map, a festival of exhibitions, workshops and events centring queer art.

they/them, @greta.sharp / gretasharp.co.uk / @margatezinefair

 

The Zines

For three zines created with such a specific focus you might expect there to be a number of similarities and overlapping ideas between them, and the zines are similar in some ways – they are all beautiful, evocative and deeply meaningful.

However, one of the most noticeable things about the zines when viewed as a single commission is just how different each of them is. The most immediately noticeable difference is the mediums each artist chose to work in – one a mix of vibrant collaged pages laid out so they can be cut out by the reader, one a colourful graphic novel, and one a beautifully laid out essay – but they also differ in the aspects of radical care and queer community each artist chose to focus on, showing how widely varied the experiences of the queer community in Kent can be.

Each of the three zines can be read below, and there are options at the bottom of the page to download them for free.

 

Zine Reading Event at The Folkestone Bookshop

One hundred and fifty copies of each zine were printed and were distributed to bookshops in each of the three artists’ hometowns where they were available for free to anyone who wanted them.

In Folkestone their zines were available at the newly opened Folkestone Bookshop, where a small reading event was held with the three commissioned artists to coincide with the launch of the zines. A selection of teas and snacks were provided and everyone attending was encouraged to bring their own zines to share.

Introduced by Dre Spisto, each of the artists spoke a little about their zines, and Greta Sharp’s zine was read aloud by Kit Griffiths. The event was attended by members of the local community and friends of Bob, Ray and Greta, and The Folkestone Bookshop were wonderful hosts.

Photo of a brightly painted bookshop with various mismatched chairs and side tables. Dre Spisto is standing in one corner speaking to the attendees, who are sitting to their right, while the three zine artists are sitting to their left.
Photo of Bob Chicalors, Ray Felix Carter, Greta Sharp and a guest at the zine reading. They are sitting next to each other in arm chairs facing the audience.
Futures of Care
Photo of some of the audience at the zine reading, sat watching Dre Spisto introduce the commission and artists. Behind them are shelves full of books.
Queer Zines of Care by Bob Chicalors, Ray Felix Carter, and Greta Sharp
Photo of a table in Folkestone Bookshop. One half has stacks of the three zines, printed as A5 booklets, and the other half has a variety of snacks including pop corn, olives, cakes, crisps and crackers.
Futures of Care
Photo of a small table in front of a shelf of books. The table has a vibrant yellow table cloth on it, and a selection of teas and herbal infusions along with a large urn, a selection of milk and non-dairy alternatives, slices of lemon, sugar cubes, and recyclable hot drink cups.
Futures of Care
Photo of a vibrantly painted room with mismatched furniture and shelves full of books. Three people are sitting on a sofa and holding up one of the zines as they discuss it with the artist, Bob Chicalors, sitting in an arm chair next to them. Another person is sitting in a second armchair and is also reading the zine
Futures of Care
A photo looking across the Folkestone Bookshop, showing various bookshelves and tables full of books, the table of zines and table of teas, with seven guests browsing the zines, teas and books.
Photo of a large chalk board with part of the Folkestone Bookshop logo drawn at the top and a list of events underneath, including
Photo of the side of a bookshelf at Folkestone Bookshop, with a chalk board saying
Futures of Care

Each of the three zines can be downloaded as a PDF here.

Queer Streets of Dover by Bob Chicalors What If We Cared Enough To Stay? by Ray Felix Carter Between Wind and Water by Greta Sharp

Commissioned by

People United

Funded by

Creative Estuary
Arts Council National Lottery Project Grants