Here is a short tutorial on how to make a low-tech, retro-style ashcan (also called a zine, a mini-comic, and many other things!), in the style of the timeless self-made folded booklet. Part of the history of comics and beloved of art students, self-employed comic artists and the dirt-poor, ashcans paved the way for independent comic artists everywhere back in the 50's and 60's.

Originally popularized as a way of publishing one's art without having to bow to the strict Comics Code Authority gestapo, which in its heyday had a tight stranglehold on censoring the content of comic books during the 1950's (and strictly regulated what you could or couldn't put in a comic), ashcans were the format of choice for underground comic artists who wanted to freely explore the medium and exchange their art with other artists and creators.

You can read more about the Comics Code Authority here ([link]), which in its prime censored comics so much that in order to BE published, a comic had to follow such rules as:

1) No presentation of "policemen, judges, government officials, and respected institutions ... in such a way as to create disrespect for established authority."

2)"in every instance good shall triumph over evil"

3)love stories had to emphasize the "sanctity of marriage"

There is even a famous story of the Code trying to reject approval of a story because the lead character was a black astronaut, and wanting him to be changed to white before the story could be printed. Such were the times under the CCA.

So it was no wonder that in the 60's, underground artists became enraged by the strangling of the comics medium and began making their own ashcan and mini-comics, self-publishing to get around the rules of the CCA. They included violence, monsters, crime, nudity, questionable stories about drug use, and all the other things that were strictly off-limits under the Code. These booklets were sold, given away or traded in head shops, in local bookstores, in cafes and other gathering places for writers.

This underground comic scene eventually rose up and influenced mainstream codes so that CCA rules were relaxed and revised over the years, and eventually the Code seal of approval was deemed no longer relevant by sellers and distributors. Thanks to the persistence of underground artists exploring comics as a free medium, we now have the freedom today to print comics without having them reviewed by an all-seeing censor board.

And you can thank the early underground comics pioneers for that freedom by making and distributing your own ashcan comics, either for selling at conventions or just making a mini-comic ring with fellow artists and trading with each other! It's a great way to get recognition and distribution for your work, especially if you don't have much of a budget!

VIVA LA ASHCAN!