issue one theme

youth culture, adolescence, identity

“at the height of my depression, i was obsessed with romanticization. i relied on the thought of rose petals, daisy chains, and acoustic guitar to get me through lonely and painful realities. i spent my free time watching conan gray videos and coming of age films, fantasizing that some day i could achieve the same level of serenity, beauty and content that the media i consumed idealized so avidly. 

i do not cringe at my previous attachment to beautiful things, nor do i deny the ways in which it helped me. however, years later i find myself seeing holes in this image i had relied so heavily on to keep stable, how heavily the ‘indie coming of age film’ aesthetic romanticized abuse, trauma, mental illness, how whitewashed everything in it was, and how these disparities ultimately had detrimental effects on people like me. it wasn’t until quite recently that i realized not all art has to be an escape or fantasy. as i became invested in discovering unfiltered art and media, it occurred to me how important it is to amplify all of the stories that go untold, especially in a world that manages to suppress marginalized voices with cookie cutter suburban fairy tales. 

this is where antifragile was born. feeling seen in art is one the best feelings, and we hope that with this issue, every reader can see a piece of themselves being displayed. we wanted this issue to feel like gen z’s diary, capturing youth culture and adolescence in this exact moment. we wanted it to be raw and real and personal, ugly and beautiful, filled with shitty doodles, journal entries, and midnight thoughts. this zine is meant for you to interact with in any way you wish to do so. we invite you to scribble, doodle, take notes, cut out, collage, put up on your walls, hoping that each copy ends up looking different. this zine is filled with art we absolutely adore, and we hope you love it just as much as we do <3”

love,

miumi shipon and macey keung