Lumpen Magazine is Public Media Institute's longest-running project and a cornerstone of Chicago's independent arts community. A news and culture magazine with over three decades of history, Lumpen features the work of emerging and established artists and writers. Known for its blend of editorials, interviews, and reviews, the magazine offers insightful commentary on current events and emerging cultural trends. With over 2 million copies distributed since 1991, Lumpen’s had a broad reach within and beyond Chicago.
While initially published monthly between 1991 and 1998, Lumpen is now a yearly or semi-annual publication. It remains dedicated to its original spirit of amplifying radical projects and people, exploring the intersections of art and politics, and fostering community through its content, events, and collaborations.
Want to know more about the history of Lumpen? Get this book!
Published in 2023, The Lumpen Times: 30+ Years of Radical Media and Building Communities of the Future shares stories from a few dozen of the thousands of collaborators of these endeavors. It contains a visual survey of the printed matter produced over the past 3 decades which shows the evolution of the xeroxed and stapled zine into an internationally awarded cultural periodical. The book is a catalog of strategies, highlighting dozens of “case studies” demonstrating how artists, activists, educators, and creative entrepreneurs of all stripes have built community and culture in our beloved city of Chicago via the printed word, physical spaces, and over the airwaves and digital networks.
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