Glasgow Zine Library

Glasgow Zine Library is a self-publishing library, archive and community space in Govanhill, Glasgow, which has an international collection of over 4,000 zines. We welcome around 9,000 people each year, across over 150 events, delivered in partnership with hundreds of artists. We are run by a small dedicated local team with the support of over 60 volunteers.

The video was selected as it focuses on the history of zine-making and DIY culture in Scotland and the evolution of Glasgow Zine Fest in Glasgow Zine Library, and the images were selected as they reflect the importance of community participation regarding our collection.

The cover for the Glasgow Zine Fest 2023 programme, in which the festival celebrated its tenth year.

Glasgow Zine Fest is an annual festival celebrating community and DIY arts – attendees sell their work, attend the programme of creative workshops and events, and read work from the pop-up library spotlighting our collection of zines. GZF 2023 featured an exhibition of zine ephemera from other zine fests and collections around the world, now held in GZL’s archive.
Govanhill Language Zine

The Govanhill Language Zine is a zine from our collection, made with members of our local community in the Southside of Glasgow, co-produced by Glasgow Zine Library and Thriving Places Govanhill. This collaborative work celebrates the diversity of language and experiences in Govanhill, Glasgow.

Community Cataloguing session

A photograph from a community cataloguing session held in Inverness in partnership with the Highland Zine Bothy. Participants read and catalogues zines from GZF’s collection, discussing how to catalogue work that defies cataloguing like many of the zines in our collection.

Decolonising the Outdoors launch event

A photograph from a 2024 event in Glasgow Zine Library launching the zine Decolonising the Outdoors, made by Aileen Angsutorn, who we commissioned as part of ESEA Heritage month with funding from the National Lottery Heritage Fund.

Glasgow Zine Fest interview, 2023

An interview from the GZF 2023 exhibition, in which Glasgow Zine Library’s founder LD discusses how the library came into existence, the history of the zine collection, and the history of GZF. Lea Cooper of Edinburgh Zine Library also discusses EZL’s history, and punk zine makers Brian Hogg, Lindsay Hutton, and Saskia Holling talk about making and distributing zines in the 80s and 90s and the zine-making community at the time.

Find out more about Glasgow Zine Library.