New Research on Latinx Zine Collectives

Marissa Del Toro pursues her research with interview notes and books from the Getty Research Library.

Marissa Del Toro is researching Latinx zine collectives from a wide geographic area spanning San Antonio, Los Angeles, Chicago, and New York as part of her 2016–17 graduate internship at the Getty Research Institute.

This spring Marissa has conducted oral-history interviews with members of the collective Mujeres Mutantes, and additional research into collectives such as La Liga and St. Sucia. This is likely the first time that these collectives, and the Latinx zines movement, have received scholarly investigation. This research subject complements recent scholarship on Latinx theory, borderlands, and third space (a hybrid and ambiguous location beyond the peripheries and center).

A recent graduate of the University of Texas at San Antonio, Marissa has been interested in studying these particular zines (self-published materials) since 2015, when she first came across the collective St. Sucia in San Antonio, Texas. Zines are often excluded from scholarly discourse despite their impact on communities because they fall outside the bounds of traditional publications.

Her research will culminate in a presentation at the Pop Culture Association/American Culture Association conference on April 13 in San Diego, attended by scholars in art history, American studies, and visual culture.

Marissa is interested in continuing to explore additional Latinx collectives whose work involves community building, social art history, and the creation of ephemera. If you have resources such as oral histories, interviews, or publications to share, please get in touch.