Artist Krys Kinsel blends mediums and tells stories
Krys Kinsel has always been making something. As a kid in the 90s, Kinsel was making comics, doodling in bright colors, experimenting with abstract designs, and seeing just how far their art could take them.
“In middle school and high school, I started making comics about daily life and zines about the goings on at school,” Kinsel remembered. “I would sell them so I could buy lollipops.”
Kinsel explored fine art, theater, and music in high school; dabbling with the cello and viola. After high school, they went to cosmetology school and spent a few years taking art classes at community college while they got their associates.
That creative exploration continues today and has manifested itself into an entire community of creatives dedicated to expressing themselves and telling unique stories.
Kinsel has brought two annual zine fairs to the Lynchburg area, which brings artists from within the local community as well as from hours away. Not quite sure what a zine is?
“A zine is essentially a self-published magazine made by one or many people,” Kinsel explained. “It’s very DIY and small press. The thing is, though, that you can’t fully describe a zine because it’s almost an abstract concept in a way—you can have a zine about anything, from poetry, prose, comics, photojournalism, or cookbooks. There are so many different ways to make a zine that there is no wrong way to make one.”
The zine fair has created the beginning stages of a unique community, which Kinsel only hopes will get even bigger.
“I’m not the first person who wanted to do a zine fair in Lynchburg. Stephen Kissel at the Academy Center of the Arts wanted to do one in 2020, but it was pushed back because of the pandemic,” they explained. “But when I was a vendor at the punk rock flea market, Kaleb Gay encouraged me to bring it to life. You’d be surprised at some of the zine makers who have come out of the woodwork.”
Kinsel is also cultivating that community through the YouTube channel Zineville—a pandemic project that has now been running strong for three years.
“It’s my chance to talk about something I’m completely passionate about,” they said. “In the early 2000s, I didn’t see a lot of zines but I’m starting to see them come up now. So [on the show], I talk about the zines I find, show how to make a zine, and show what other people can do with them. I’m starting to see a new generation wanting to express themselves—not on a blog but in a physical way. Everyone wants to make something because it makes them feel good. Zines are an easy way to do that.”
Kinsel waves the banner for zines whenever they have the chance, including local makers fairs where they are often a vendor.
“I go to the Maker’s Faire in the spring and I generally do the same project every year,” they said. “Everybody gets to make a zine at my booth. I show kids and adults how to make a zine just out of one piece of paper. You can see the spark happen in that moment.”
Currently, Kinsel is planning the next zine fair for the Lynchburg area, which they hope will take place next spring. They are also working on a collaborative zine project with multiple contributors called Granny Creatures Folk Wisdom which explores Appalachian folklore.
