How to reappear: Through the quivering leaves of independent publishing | 2020
Curated by Kayfa ta / Maha Maamoun and Ala Younis
Independent publishing initiatives have long been dismissed or underrepresented. Despite the important role independent practices play—sometimes by their sheer existence—in questioning creative, professional and political boundaries, they remain little known, their publications hard to find, and the history of their struggles against restrictive publishing regimes scantily written. From hand-drawn, self-promoting paper kites to relatively established independent publishing houses, alternative publishing practices show the breadth of possibility, as well as the strength and vulnerability, of some of our most creative and daring civil propositions. This exhibition grew out of extensive and ongoing research into the significant yet relatively invisible practices of independent publishing. Parallel to the exhibition, a public program of talks, performances, book launches, workshops, and other gatherings—exploring the possibilities of publishing in the present moment. It comes parallel to the beginning of a new series of publications, Kayfa tanshur (How to Publish), which explores the significant work of individuals, collectives, and institutions in the field of alternative art and publishing practices, past and present.