UNLOCK BOOK FAIR
COLOGNE 2019

288KK Press
Publisher | PL

abcdef
Self-publishing author | DE

Alex Ander.52
Self-publishing author | GR

BAMN
Magazine | NL

Boulevard
Magazine | DE

Boxcar
Magazine | DE

Chemistry Publishing
Publisher | NL

Cityfuck
Magazine | DE

Cut in the Fence
Publisher | US

Death Vallée
Self-publishing author | FR

Dokument Press
Publisher | SE

Éditions Carton-Pâte
Publisher | FR

futura Publications
Publisher | GR

Haendehoch!
Zine | NL

Hitzerot
Publisher, store and distributor | DE

Insomnia
Magazine | IL

International Neighbourhood
Publisher | DE

Kudla Werkstatt
Publisher | CZ

Le Grand Jeu
Bookstore | FR

Nokkio Institute of Zines
Publisher | BE/HU

Nuart Journal
Magazine | NO

Podpolie
Publisher | DE/BY

Pressure Expansion Valve
Magazine | GR

Prisonism
Publisher | UK

professionaldreamers
Publisher | IT

Slap Me Baby
Magazine | CH

Stickit
Publisher | NL

TBOOKS COLOGNE
Publisher | DE

Urbanario
Publisher | ES

Wolf Daubin
Self-publishing author | DE

Zelle Asphaltkultur
Self-publishing collective | DE

Zugriff
Magazine | DE

➔ Dedicated Store
➔ Hamburger Str. 18

➔ Vinyl sets

Hip-hop, rare groove and funk
By DJ Olek and DJ Pushen

➔ Screening

Inside the gancheros meeting (raw footage)
63’, 2014 (loop)
Nofrontery Films and Adrian Macías (MX)

➔ 20h — Talk

Introduction to the Unlock Book Fair project
With director Javier Abarca

➔ 14h — Screening

‘Aufkleber und Artverwandtes around Europe’
120’ loop
Slap me Baby collective (CH)

➔ 16h — Screening

‘Inside the gancheros meeting’
10’, 2019
Kooperativa Rayenari and Sabotaje Media (MX) present a rare look into the obscure “ganchos” tagging culture of Monterrey

➔ 16:15h — Talk

Christian Omodeo (FR) presents Grintz, a collaborative database of graffiti and street art publications

➔ 16:30 — Workshop

Add your publications to the Grintz database
With Christian Omodeo (FR)

➔ 16:30 — Publication launches

‘Let’s disappear’
By Bus 126
With publishers Hitzerot (DE)

‘Boulevard’
With the magazine’s editorial team (DE)

‘Punk graffiti archives: The Netherlands’
‘Punk graffiti archives: Madrid’
Second editions
Published by Urbanario (ES) and Hitzerot (DE)
With co-editor Javier Abarca (ES)

➔ 17h — Talks

Adam Void (US)
Presentation of the publishing project Cut in the Fence

Mathieu Tremblin (FR)
‘Open source publishing as an alternative to the art-object-driven economy’

Carl Cattermole (UK)
Reading from his book ‘Prisonism’ (Penguin 2019)

➔ 20h — Live act

‘Movement of Letters’
By dancer and calligrapher Kadir ‘Amigo’ Memis (DE)

➔ 12h—Publication launches

‘Eisensteppe, Spuren des Hoboismus in Deutschland’
Published by Hitzerot (DE)
With author Jan Klöthe (DE)

‘Nuart Journal’ issue 3 (NO)
With editor Susan Hansen (UK)

‘2019 questions’
With author and publisher abcdef (DE)

‘Rail experimental, Belgian train worker art’
By Ben Brohanszky (BE/HU)
With co-publishers Hitzerot (DE)

‘A’Dam graffity’
By Ben Brohanszky (BE/HU)
With co-publishers Hitzerot (DE)

This year’s location was particularly fitting: two of the abandoned arches under the railway in the Ehrenfeld area. The fair was part of the opening weekend of CityLeaks festival. The street was blocked to car traffic, with music and other events going on in different arches all day and until midnight.

The lineup again included projects from all across Europe, and also from other continents – ‘Insomnia’, the first graffiti magazine from Israel, and US publishing house Cut in the Fence, co-directed by Adam Void, who gave a lively presentation about the project.

Two particularly ambitious and long-awaited projects were launched at this year’s fair. One is ‘Boulevard’ magazine, edited by the German authors and curators Robert Kaltenhäuser and Harald Hinz. This first issue of the magazine features, among other things, a collection of relevant essays from different eras that either have been long out of print or had never been translated to English.

The second groundbreaking contribution is Grintz, directed by Paris-based curator Christian Omodeo, a collaborative online database for graffiti and street art publications that is sure to change the game for aficionados the world over.

Other highlights of the fair’s public programme were the screening of the film ‘Inside the Gancheros Meeting’, a rare look into the obscure ‘ganchos’ tagging culture of Monterrey, México, and the closing dance performance by Turkish-German calligrapher and choreographer Kadir ‘Amigo’ Memis.

On the Monday and Tuesday directly after the fair, and also in Cologne, the same team behind the 2019 Unlock Book Fair produced the third instalment of the Tag Conference, a unique gathering of researchers dealing with different forms of tagging of all eras.

Big thank-you to all the publishers and volunteers, to CityLeaks and to everyone who came. Thanks to Dedicated Store, the hub of the local graffiti scene, who kindly hosted the fair’s warm-up party on the Friday evening.

See you at the next Unlock Book Fair! 📚🔥❤️🎉