''Mineshaft'' is an independent international art magazine launched in 1999 by Everett Rand and Gioia Palmieri in
Guilford,
Vermont
Vermont () is a state in the northeast New England region of the United States. Vermont is bordered by the states of Massachusetts to the south, New Hampshire to the east, and New York to the west, and the Canadian province of Quebec to ...
. Initially focusing on poetry and literature, the magazine began to publish comics after
Robert Crumb
Robert Dennis Crumb (; born August 30, 1943) is an American cartoonist and musician who often signs his work R. Crumb. His work displays a nostalgia for American folk culture of the late 19th and early 20th centuries, and satire of contem ...
became a contributor in 2000. The newsblog at ''
The Guardian
''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...
'' refers to ''Mineshafts website as a source to find out more about Crumb's latest work.
History
''Mineshaft'' was the idea of Everett Rand who was inspired by his friendship and correspondence with
Irving Stettner, who published the legendary underground magazine, ''Stroker'', which featured contributions from
Henry Miller
Henry Valentine Miller (December 26, 1891 – June 7, 1980) was an American novelist. He broke with existing literary forms and developed a new type of semi-autobiographical novel that blended character study, social criticism, philosophical ref ...
and
Paul Bowles
Paul Frederic Bowles (; December 30, 1910November 18, 1999) was an American expatriate composer, author, and translator. He became associated with the Moroccan city of Tangier, where he settled in 1947 and lived for 52 years to the end of his ...
. The name for the magazine came from Rand's favorite bar in
La Paz,
Bolivia where he and co-editor, Gioia Palmieri, lived in the early 1990s.
The first issue featured a drawing by Stettner. After issue #4, Rand wrote to
Robert Crumb
Robert Dennis Crumb (; born August 30, 1943) is an American cartoonist and musician who often signs his work R. Crumb. His work displays a nostalgia for American folk culture of the late 19th and early 20th centuries, and satire of contem ...
who responded by sending a packet of sketchbook drawings. After issue #5, Crumb designed logos for the magazine which ''Mineshaft'' has been using ever since. Crumb's regular contributions include fourteen front covers, sixteen back covers and a total to date of more than 240 pages of artwork, writing, and letters.
After living and publishing ''Mineshaft'' in Vermont and
West Virginia
West Virginia is a state in the Appalachian, Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States.The Census Bureau and the Association of American Geographers classify West Virginia as part of the Southern United States while the B ...
, the editors, Rand and Palmieri, moved their operations to
Durham Durham most commonly refers to:
*Durham, England, a cathedral city and the county town of County Durham
*County Durham, an English county
* Durham County, North Carolina, a county in North Carolina, United States
*Durham, North Carolina, a city in N ...
,
North Carolina
North Carolina () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States. The state is the 28th largest and 9th-most populous of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, Georgia and ...
.
The magazine currently publishes new or previously unpublished material from some of the major artists of the
underground comix
Underground comix are small press or self-published comic books that are often socially relevant or satirical in nature. They differ from mainstream comics in depicting content forbidden to mainstream publications by the Comics Code Authority, ...
movement, as well as other items which include fiction, poetry, photography and short essays. Since 2009, ''Mineshaft'' has been serializing "Excerpts from R. Crumb's Dream Diary" by Robert Crumb. In the fall of 2017, ''Mineshaft'' published ''The Mineshaft Reader'' with front cover art and design by Robert Crumb containing new and old work from regular contributors including
Robert Crumb
Robert Dennis Crumb (; born August 30, 1943) is an American cartoonist and musician who often signs his work R. Crumb. His work displays a nostalgia for American folk culture of the late 19th and early 20th centuries, and satire of contem ...
,
Billy Childish,
Mary Fleener
Mary Fleener (born September 14, 1951) is an American alternative comics artist, writer and musician from Los Angeles. Fleener's drawing style, which she calls ''cubismo'', derives from the cubist aesthetic and other artistic traditions. Her f ...
, and
Jay Lynch
Jay Patrick Lynch (January 7, 1945 – March 5, 2017) was an American cartoonist who played a key role in the underground comix movement with his ''Bijou Funnies'' and other titles. He is best known for his comic strip ''Nard n' Pat'' and the ...
.
''Mineshaft'' contributors
* Robert Armstrong
*
Ace Backwords
Peter Labriola (born September 12, 1956), better known by the pen name Ace Backwords is an American author and a former underground cartoonist based in Berkeley, California. He sleeps rough on the streets of Berkeley, but is not indigent.
*
Peter Bagge
Peter Bagge (pronounced , as in ''bag''; born December 11, 1957) is an American cartoonist whose best-known work includes the comics ''Hate'' and '' Neat Stuff''. His stories often use black humor and exaggerated cartooning to dramatize the reduce ...
*
Brutalists
Brutalism is a literary movement formed in 2006 by three writers from the north of England (Tony O'Neill, Adelle Stripe and Ben Myers).
The Brutalists are affiliated with the Offbeat generation, a loose association of like-minded writers wo ...
:
Ben Myers
Benjamin Myers (born January 1976) is an English writer and journalist.
Early life
Myers grew up in Belmont, County Durham, and was a pupil at the estate's local comprehensive school where he become interested in reading and skateboarding.
M ...
,
Tony O'Neill
Tony O'Neill (born 1978, Blackburn, Lancashire) is an English writer based in New York. A one-time musician with Kenickie (1997–98), Marc Almond (1997–98), The Brian Jonestown Massacre (1999) and Kelli Ali (2001–04), O'Neill is also the ...
,
Adelle Stripe
Adelle Stripe (born 1976) is an English writer and journalist.
Work
Stripe's writing is rooted in the non-fiction novel form and explores working-class culture, untold histories of Northern England, popular music, and small-town life.
''Bla ...
*
Charles Bukowski
Henry Charles Bukowski ( ; born Heinrich Karl Bukowski, ; August 16, 1920 – March 9, 1994) was a German-American poet, novelist, and short story writer. His writing was influenced by the social, cultural, and economic ambience of his adopted ...
*
Nina Bunjevac
*
Billy Childish
*
Andrei Codrescu
*
David Collier
* William Crook, Jr.
*
Robert Crumb
Robert Dennis Crumb (; born August 30, 1943) is an American cartoonist and musician who often signs his work R. Crumb. His work displays a nostalgia for American folk culture of the late 19th and early 20th centuries, and satire of contem ...
*
Aline Kominsky Crumb
*
Sophie Crumb
Sophia Violet "Sophie" Crumb (born September 27, 1981) is an American-French comics artist. She is the daughter of underground comix artists Robert Crumb and Aline Kominsky-Crumb.
Crumb was born in Woodland, California, and lived in the nearby f ...
*
Kim Deitch
Kim Deitch (born May 21, 1944 in Los Angeles, California)Donahue, Don and Susan Goodrick, editors. Deitch bio, ''The Apex Treasuet of Underground Comics'' (Apex Novelties, 1974), p. 127. is an American cartoonist who was an important figure in th ...
*
Simon Deitch
*
Diane di Prima
Diane di Prima (August 6, 1934October 25, 2020) was an American poet, known for her association with the Beat movement. She was also an artist, prose writer, and teacher. Her magnum opus is widely considered to be ''Loba'', a collection of poems ...
* Luca Donnini
*
Dennis Eichhorn
Dennis P. Eichhorn (August 19, 1945 – October 8, 2015) was an American writer, best known for his adult-oriented autobiographical comic book series ''Real Stuff''. His stories, often involving, sex, drugs, and alcohol, have been compared to tho ...
*
Mary Fleener
Mary Fleener (born September 14, 1951) is an American alternative comics artist, writer and musician from Los Angeles. Fleener's drawing style, which she calls ''cubismo'', derives from the cubist aesthetic and other artistic traditions. Her f ...
*
Justin Green
*
Bill Griffith
William Henry Jackson Griffith (born January 20, 1944) is an American cartoonist who signs his work Bill Griffith and Griffy. He is best known for his surreal comedy, surreal daily comic strip ''Zippy the Pinhead, Zippy''. The catchphrase "Are w ...
* J.R. Helton
*
Jay Kinney
Jay Kinney (born 1950) is an American author, editor, and former underground cartoonist. Kinney has been noted for "adding new dimensions to the political comic" in the underground comix press of the 1970s and '80s.
Kinney was a member, along w ...
* Aaron Lange
*
Jay Lynch
Jay Patrick Lynch (January 7, 1945 – March 5, 2017) was an American cartoonist who played a key role in the underground comix movement with his ''Bijou Funnies'' and other titles. He is best known for his comic strip ''Nard n' Pat'' and the ...
* Pat Moriarity
* Christoph Mueller
* James G. Mundie
*
Harvey Pekar
Harvey Lawrence Pekar (; October 8, 1939 – July 12, 2010) was an American underground comic book writer, music critic, and media personality, best known for his autobiographical ''American Splendor'' comic series. In 2003, the series inspired a ...
*
Ed Piskor
Ed Piskor (born July 28, 1982)''Comics Buyer's Guide'' #1650; February 2009; page 107 is an alternative comics artist operating out of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. He is a former student of The Kubert School and is best known for his artistic colla ...
* Peter Poplaski
*
John Porcellino
John Porcellino (born September 18, 1968, in Chicago, Illinois) is a popular creator of minicomics. Porcellino's self-published, photocopied, mostly autobiographical series '' King-Cat Comics'' is among the best-known and longest-running minicomi ...
*
Jeremy Reed
Jeremy Thomas Reed (born June 15, 1981) is an American former professional baseball outfielder in Major League Baseball (MLB).
Early life
Reed graduated from Bonita High School in La Verne, California in 1999, and went on to play college basebal ...
*
Spain Rodriguez
Manuel Rodriguez (March 2, 1940 – November 28, 2012), better known as Spain or Spain Rodriguez, was an American underground cartoonist who created the character Trashman. His experiences on the road with the motorcycle club, the Road Vultures M ...
*
Noah Van Sciver
*
Tara Seibel
Tara Seibel (born February 4, 1973) is an American cartoonist, graphic designer and illustrator from Cleveland. Her work has been published in '' Chicago Newcity, Funny Times, The Austin Chronicle, Cleveland Scene, Heeb Magazine, SMITH Maga ...
* Bruce Simon
*
Art Spiegelman
Art Spiegelman (; born Itzhak Avraham ben Zeev Spiegelman on February 15, 1948) is an American cartoonist, editor, and comics advocate best known for his graphic novel '' Maus''. His work as co-editor on the comics magazines ''Arcade'' and '' Ra ...
*
Frank Stack
Frank Huntington Stack (born October 31, 1937 in Houston, Texas) is an American underground cartoonist and fine artist. Working under the name Foolbert Sturgeon to avoid persecution for his work while living in the Bible Belt, Stack published w ...
* Irving Stettner
* Tommy Trantino (
Thomas Trantino)
*
Carol Tyler
Carol Tyler (born November 20, 1951) is an American painter, educator, comedian, and eleven-time Eisner Award-nominated cartoonist known for her autobiographical comics. She has received multiple honors for her work including the Cartoonist Studi ...
*
Skip Williamson
Mervyn "Skip" Williamson (August 19, 1944 – March 16, 2017) was an American underground cartoonist and central figure in the underground comix movement. Williamson's art was published in the '' National Lampoon'', ''High Times'', ''the Reali ...
*
Aleksandar Zograf
Saša Rakezić (born 1963 in Pančevo, Serbia), better known by his pen name Aleksandar Zograf, is a Serbian cartoonist. His works focus mostly on life in the former Yugoslavia, such as ''Life Under Sanctions'', ''Psychonaut'', ''Dream Watche ...
''Mineshaft'' cover artists
* Mineshaft #1 Irving Stettner (1999)
* Mineshaft #2 Everett Rand (photo) (1999)
* Mineshaft #3 Tommy Trantino (
Thomas Trantino) (2000)
* Mineshaft #4 Everett Rand (photo collage) (2000)
* Mineshaft #5
Robert Crumb
Robert Dennis Crumb (; born August 30, 1943) is an American cartoonist and musician who often signs his work R. Crumb. His work displays a nostalgia for American folk culture of the late 19th and early 20th centuries, and satire of contem ...
(2000)
* Mineshaft #6
Robert Crumb
Robert Dennis Crumb (; born August 30, 1943) is an American cartoonist and musician who often signs his work R. Crumb. His work displays a nostalgia for American folk culture of the late 19th and early 20th centuries, and satire of contem ...
(2001)
* Mineshaft #7
Robert Crumb
Robert Dennis Crumb (; born August 30, 1943) is an American cartoonist and musician who often signs his work R. Crumb. His work displays a nostalgia for American folk culture of the late 19th and early 20th centuries, and satire of contem ...
(2001)
* Mineshaft #8 Jorin Ostroska (2002)
* Mineshaft #9
Robert Crumb
Robert Dennis Crumb (; born August 30, 1943) is an American cartoonist and musician who often signs his work R. Crumb. His work displays a nostalgia for American folk culture of the late 19th and early 20th centuries, and satire of contem ...
(2002)
* Mineshaft #10
Robert Crumb
Robert Dennis Crumb (; born August 30, 1943) is an American cartoonist and musician who often signs his work R. Crumb. His work displays a nostalgia for American folk culture of the late 19th and early 20th centuries, and satire of contem ...
(2003)
* Mineshaft #11
Robert Crumb
Robert Dennis Crumb (; born August 30, 1943) is an American cartoonist and musician who often signs his work R. Crumb. His work displays a nostalgia for American folk culture of the late 19th and early 20th centuries, and satire of contem ...
(2003)
* Mineshaft #12
Kim Deitch
Kim Deitch (born May 21, 1944 in Los Angeles, California)Donahue, Don and Susan Goodrick, editors. Deitch bio, ''The Apex Treasuet of Underground Comics'' (Apex Novelties, 1974), p. 127. is an American cartoonist who was an important figure in th ...
with logo by
Robert Crumb
Robert Dennis Crumb (; born August 30, 1943) is an American cartoonist and musician who often signs his work R. Crumb. His work displays a nostalgia for American folk culture of the late 19th and early 20th centuries, and satire of contem ...
(2003)
* Mineshaft #13
Robert Crumb
Robert Dennis Crumb (; born August 30, 1943) is an American cartoonist and musician who often signs his work R. Crumb. His work displays a nostalgia for American folk culture of the late 19th and early 20th centuries, and satire of contem ...
(2004)
* Mineshaft #14
Phoebe Gloeckner
Phoebe Louise Adams Gloeckner (born December 22, 1960), is an American cartoonist, illustrator, painter, and novelist.
Early life
Gloeckner was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Her mother was a librarian and her father, David Gloeckner, was ...
with logo by
Robert Crumb
Robert Dennis Crumb (; born August 30, 1943) is an American cartoonist and musician who often signs his work R. Crumb. His work displays a nostalgia for American folk culture of the late 19th and early 20th centuries, and satire of contem ...
(2004)
* Mineshaft #15
Robert Crumb
Robert Dennis Crumb (; born August 30, 1943) is an American cartoonist and musician who often signs his work R. Crumb. His work displays a nostalgia for American folk culture of the late 19th and early 20th centuries, and satire of contem ...
(2005)
* Mineshaft #16 Robert Armstrong (2005)
* Mineshaft #17
Frank Stack
Frank Huntington Stack (born October 31, 1937 in Houston, Texas) is an American underground cartoonist and fine artist. Working under the name Foolbert Sturgeon to avoid persecution for his work while living in the Bible Belt, Stack published w ...
with logo by
Robert Crumb
Robert Dennis Crumb (; born August 30, 1943) is an American cartoonist and musician who often signs his work R. Crumb. His work displays a nostalgia for American folk culture of the late 19th and early 20th centuries, and satire of contem ...
(2006)
* Mineshaft #18 Simon Deitch (2006)
* Mineshaft #19
Peter Bagge
Peter Bagge (pronounced , as in ''bag''; born December 11, 1957) is an American cartoonist whose best-known work includes the comics ''Hate'' and '' Neat Stuff''. His stories often use black humor and exaggerated cartooning to dramatize the reduce ...
(2007)
* Mineshaft #20
Billy Childish (2007)
* Mineshaft #21
Robert Crumb
Robert Dennis Crumb (; born August 30, 1943) is an American cartoonist and musician who often signs his work R. Crumb. His work displays a nostalgia for American folk culture of the late 19th and early 20th centuries, and satire of contem ...
(2008)
* Mineshaft #22 Robert Armstrong and Orrin J. Heller (2008)
* Mineshaft #23
Jay Lynch
Jay Patrick Lynch (January 7, 1945 – March 5, 2017) was an American cartoonist who played a key role in the underground comix movement with his ''Bijou Funnies'' and other titles. He is best known for his comic strip ''Nard n' Pat'' and the ...
(2008)
* Mineshaft #24
Mary Fleener
Mary Fleener (born September 14, 1951) is an American alternative comics artist, writer and musician from Los Angeles. Fleener's drawing style, which she calls ''cubismo'', derives from the cubist aesthetic and other artistic traditions. Her f ...
(2009)
* Mineshaft #25
Sophie Crumb
Sophia Violet "Sophie" Crumb (born September 27, 1981) is an American-French comics artist. She is the daughter of underground comix artists Robert Crumb and Aline Kominsky-Crumb.
Crumb was born in Woodland, California, and lived in the nearby f ...
with
Robert Crumb
Robert Dennis Crumb (; born August 30, 1943) is an American cartoonist and musician who often signs his work R. Crumb. His work displays a nostalgia for American folk culture of the late 19th and early 20th centuries, and satire of contem ...
(2010)
* Mineshaft #26 Pat Moriarity (2010)
* Mineshaft #27
Nina Bunjevac (2011)
* Mineshaft #28 Christoph Mueller (2012)
* Mineshaft #29 Brad Barrett with logo by
Robert Crumb
Robert Dennis Crumb (; born August 30, 1943) is an American cartoonist and musician who often signs his work R. Crumb. His work displays a nostalgia for American folk culture of the late 19th and early 20th centuries, and satire of contem ...
(2013)
* Mineshaft #30
Robert Crumb
Robert Dennis Crumb (; born August 30, 1943) is an American cartoonist and musician who often signs his work R. Crumb. His work displays a nostalgia for American folk culture of the late 19th and early 20th centuries, and satire of contem ...
(15th Anniversary Issue) (2014)
* Mineshaft #31
Jay Lynch
Jay Patrick Lynch (January 7, 1945 – March 5, 2017) was an American cartoonist who played a key role in the underground comix movement with his ''Bijou Funnies'' and other titles. He is best known for his comic strip ''Nard n' Pat'' and the ...
(2015)
* Mineshaft #32 Christoph Mueller (2015)
* Mineshaft #33
Mary Fleener
Mary Fleener (born September 14, 1951) is an American alternative comics artist, writer and musician from Los Angeles. Fleener's drawing style, which she calls ''cubismo'', derives from the cubist aesthetic and other artistic traditions. Her f ...
(2016)
* Mineshaft #34
Robert Crumb
Robert Dennis Crumb (; born August 30, 1943) is an American cartoonist and musician who often signs his work R. Crumb. His work displays a nostalgia for American folk culture of the late 19th and early 20th centuries, and satire of contem ...
(2016)
* Mineshaft #35
Robert Crumb
Robert Dennis Crumb (; born August 30, 1943) is an American cartoonist and musician who often signs his work R. Crumb. His work displays a nostalgia for American folk culture of the late 19th and early 20th centuries, and satire of contem ...
(
Jay Lynch
Jay Patrick Lynch (January 7, 1945 – March 5, 2017) was an American cartoonist who played a key role in the underground comix movement with his ''Bijou Funnies'' and other titles. He is best known for his comic strip ''Nard n' Pat'' and the ...
Memorial Issue) (2018)
Awards
In June, 2009, ''Mineshaft'' #23 and Jay Lynch were nominated under the category "Best Cover Artist" for a
Harvey Award
The Harvey Awards are given for achievement in comic books. Named for writer-artist Harvey Kurtzman, the Harvey Awards were founded by Gary Groth in 1988, president of the publisher Fantagraphics, to be the successor to the Kirby Awards that were ...
2009.
See also
Andrei Codrescu reviews ''Mineshaft #27'' in ''The Exquisite Corpse''Tom Spurgeon, ''The Comics Reporter'', reviews ''Mineshaft'' #26"Past and Future: ''Mineshaft'' #26" Review by Rob Clough for
Fantagraphics
Fantagraphics (previously Fantagraphics Books) is an American publisher of alternative comics, classic comic strip anthologies, manga, magazines, graphic novels, and the erotic Eros Comix imprint.
History
Founding
Fantagraphics was found ...
& ''
The Comics Journal
''The Comics Journal'', often abbreviated ''TCJ'', is an American magazine of news and criticism pertaining to comic books, comic strips and graphic novels. Known for its lengthy interviews with comic creators, pointed editorials and scathing re ...
''
"Letters From Old Friends: ''Mineshaft'' #25" Review by Rob Clough for
Fantagraphics
Fantagraphics (previously Fantagraphics Books) is an American publisher of alternative comics, classic comic strip anthologies, manga, magazines, graphic novels, and the erotic Eros Comix imprint.
History
Founding
Fantagraphics was found ...
and ''
The Comics Journal
''The Comics Journal'', often abbreviated ''TCJ'', is an American magazine of news and criticism pertaining to comic books, comic strips and graphic novels. Known for its lengthy interviews with comic creators, pointed editorials and scathing re ...
''
"Midnight Snack: ''Mineshaft'' #23" Review by Tom Spurgeon in The Comics Reporter*
ttp://www.comicsreporter.com/index.php/briefings/cr_reviews/12670/ The Comics Reporter: Tom Spurgeon reviews ''Mineshaft'' #21*
WFMU
WFMU is a listener-supported, independent community radio station, licensed to East Orange, New Jersey. Since 1998 its studios and operating facilities have been headquartered in Jersey City, New Jersey. It broadcasts locally at 91.1 Mhz FM, in ...
br>
''Beware of the Blog'' reviews ''Mineshaft'' #18
References
External links
''Mineshaft'' official site
{{DEFAULTSORT:Mineshaft (magazine)
1999 establishments in Vermont
Comics publications
Magazines established in 1999
Magazines published in North Carolina
Magazines published in Vermont
Magazines published in West Virginia
Mass media in Durham, North Carolina
Triannual magazines published in the United States
Underground comix
Visual arts magazines published in the United States
Zines