Hong Kong zine artist Forrest Lau finds inspiration from island life

On the small and tranquil island of Peng Chau, just a half-hour ferry ride from bustling Central, Hong Kong zine designer Forrest Lau finds solace and inspiration away from fast-paced city life. The island with just over 5,700 residents “nurtures” and fuels his creative pursuits, the artist said. 

Inside Lau’s village house is a small studio filled with dozens of books about zine-making and graphic design. More than ten rolls of tape are neatly arranged on his desk, while papers illustrating the effects of various printing techniques are posted on the walls. 

Lau’s cat sat quietly next to a pile of zines he had collected over the years, staring attentively at the 40-year-old graphic designer. During his interview with HKFP in early April, he demonstrated how to use a booklet stapler for creating zines at home.

Every nook and cranny of Peng Chau was a source of inspiration for Lau, who moved there with his partner almost five years ago. In 2020, he released a zine titled Steel Door in Peng Chau to capture the beauty and craftsmanship of traditional steel gates that were uniquely carved for eight local stores decades ago.

Lau skilfully showcased the artisanal patterns on paper, employing textured and vibrant risograph printing techniques. To further emulate the folding gates, he hand-folded certain pages of the zine. Limited to just 30 copies, each one became a cherished collectible in its own right and a record of architectural features that were vanishing in other parts of Hong Kong. 

‘Embrace the alternative’

From designing to editing, printing to publishing, Lau said he enjoys the process of making a zine since many steps could only be achieved by hand. More and more people in Hong Kong are seeking to “embrace the alternative” and move away from traditional publishing practices that may limit creativity, he said.

With the freedom to disregard the need to cater to a broad audience, Lau said he could experiment with colourful and evocative visuals, something often lacking in many local publications.

“You don’t have to reach the mass. You just have to reach the niche. Maybe just a few dozen,” he said in Cantonese, adding he found mainstream design to be “very boring” after working in the graphic design industry for more than a decade. 

The origin of zines can be traced back to the 1930s and 40s, when science fiction fans started publishing short magazines featuring imaginative and futuristic stories. In the 1970s, fan-written and independently distributed publications gained significant popularity, particularly within the punk movement, which had a profound impact worldwide.

In the present day, zines can be found covering a wide range of topics. Lau, who created his initial zine in 2015, focuses on a variety of passions and interests, encompassing music, films, and the unique aspects of his island lifestyle.

Lau’s project Zinema encompasses two captivating titles that chronicle his personal exploration of cinema. In one zine, characterised by a yellow, black, and white theme, he presents a curated selection of 20 “essential” films from the French New Wave movement. The other zine, adorned with a red, blue, and white colour scheme, showcases Lau’s handpicked collection of 15 iconic movie villains, featuring characters like Hannibal Lecter from The Silence of the Lambs and Norman Stansfield from Léon. 

New format

In a departure from the conventional booklet format, Lau’s recent work marked his venture into the realm of the eight-fold-zine. A notable creation in this format was a palm-sized, hand-folded zine that recounts his immersive three-day experience with a herbal master in the remote Isan area of Thailand, with no electricity or internet. 

The zine was designed and produced while Lau and his partner were still in Thailand. They visited local stationery shops to find suitable paper and searched for local print shops to bring the zine to life. 

The end product became a “bridge of communication” between Lau and the individuals he encountered during his journey, which was part of his six-month nomadic lifestyle in Asia that spanned six months from last September. 

‘Exchange energy’

Zine culture is relatively nascent in most Asian countries and regions, Lau told HKFP. In the hope of promoting DIY publishing and helping other zine makers produce their own publications, the Hong Kong artist co-founded ZINE COOP in 2017. The independent publishing collective organises zine-making workshops and exhibitions, published occasionally, shares zine finds on social media and takes part in zine fairs around the world. 

During the Jeju Book Fair in the last week of March, Lau was able to showcase his work alongside a diverse group of independent publishers from across Asia. These fairs serve as a platform for Lau to reconnect with the “purity of creation” and “exchange energy,” the graphic designer said, pointing to the common practice of swapping publications among exhibitors.

“Creators know how valuable a piece of work is, so we were very happy to exchange copies of our work,” he said. 

In comparison to other Asian countries and cities, Hong Kong has relatively fewer exhibitions where zine makers can showcase their creations. The most notable is the BOOKED: Hong Kong Art Book Fair, held at Tai Kwun. This fair, which held its fifth edition last year, attracted local, regional, and international publishers, artists, booksellers, and organisations.

Due to the print-on-demand nature of zines, many artists typically offer limited copies of their work for sale in independent bookstores. These bookstores play a crucial role in the ecosystem of zines, as they provide a vital channel to a broader audience. 

However, the future of independent bookstores in Hong Kong is challenging, as demonstrated by the recent closure of the popular Mount Zero. The store cited a series of inspections by authorities in response to anonymous complaints as the reason for its closure earlier this month. On its final day, hundreds of book lovers trekked up the ladder streets of Sheung Wan to bid farewell.

The closure of Mount Zero and other independent bookstores may affect the visibility and accessibility of zines, said Lau, whose zine collective published a yearbook for the bookstore in 2020 to mark its two-year anniversary.

“The support of independent bookstores is important, because zines require an audience and the reach matters. If there is only input and no output for a prolonged period of time, it would affect creativity,” he said. 

With over nine years of experience of publishing zines in Hong Kong, Lau acknowledges that it is difficult to rely solely on zine production as a means of making a living. Instead, he hopes each of his projects will reach a “self-sustaining state” where the revenue generated from sales can cover the costs of production. 

“Zine-making is an activity that burns passion… it can never bring the same amount of income as a freelance job. But I can make contact with people in the design industry through making zines and I may find my potential clients this way,” he said. 

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This interview is the first in a four-part series on Hong Kong’s zine scene. Tune in next week when we speak to Kaitlin Chan.

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