The written word is usually cached in books, stowed away in libraries and bookstores. It’s about time it was put before the masses and celebrated. At least that is what Sarah Michelle Rupert and Ingrid Schindall thought and that is the reason for their latest creation… the Small Press Fair (SPF).

“This has been a long time coming. We had been talking for a couple of years about wanting to bring something to Fort Lauderdale [that would celebrate print media and the zine culture.]” said Rupert, artist, curator and gallery director for the Girls’ Club Foundation.

The idea for SPF came before Miami Zine Fair, but it was the success of the Zine Fair that made SPF seem feasible.

“I wanted to have a small press fair or print fair as soon as I moved to Fort Lauderdale, but didn’t have the resources to make it happen right away. When Sarah came to me and said that Girls’ Club was interested in putting together a Book and Zine Fair, I jumped at the chance to help. I couldn’t be happier with the way it came out,” said Schindall, who opened IS projects in 2014 in FATVillage, a communal printmaking and book arts studio. Originally from South Florida, she moved back here after graduating from Maryland Institute College of Art (MICA).

Rupert added, “I thought it was a great idea to bring SPF to Fort Lauderdale. Over the past few years, I have watched the Flagler [Art Walk] and FATVillage grow up in terms of what they are offering in Contemporary and Experimental Art.”

Held in November within FATVillage’s ArtsUp!, the SPF event included two areas. The Beach Front area included larger independent publishers, presses and special collections and the Zine Dunes was perfect for the indie artists, musicians, designers and collectives. Over 50 exhibitors showed off a wide variety of books. There were authors, publishers, book sellers, printmakers, artists, designers and more.

They had live presentations and educational workshops, as well as local author book talks. There were even live demos and print techniques shown off, including risograph, screen printing and large scale printing with a steamroller. Artists could try it out or contribute to a book, and have it printed and ready to pick up at the end.

“This is not just a trade show, not just a print fair, not just a zine fair,” said Schindall. “This is a day to bring together and celebrate all print media.”
Want more information on the SPF? Visit www.SPF-FTL.com.