Rio writes: Rio Aubry Taylor is a multidisciplinary cartooner and cyberpunk living the life of a movie-star secret hideout, somewhere in the United States. Xe enjoys the taste and sensation of warm mud and the feelings evoked from one-pointed concentration. In the summer Rio is a butterfly/bee, flitting from honey to flowers. In the winter xe’s a knight-statue, staying very still, lying under ground.

Rio possesses an MFA from the Center for Cartoon Studies and has been published by The National Cartoonists Society and the Swedish Comics Association, among others. Xir newest comics project is a monthly ongoing work of brutal psychedelia called JETTY, of which Rio will be debuting the third issue at Zine Machine. jettycomics.com

Desi “Ironriots” Varsel is a blogger, illustrator and comic artist. Their content deals predominantly with themes of identity, exploring the nature of fandom, gender, sexuality, spirituality and their journeys with mental illness. Come and check out their traditional and digital printmaking, illustration work, buttons and of course zines as well as viewing their work on tumblr and instagram.

CKP writes: CLOWN-KISSES PRESS is a comix collective/publisher based in Richmond, VA. The artists of CKP (Rellie Brewer, Harrison Stewart, and James McPherson) create work across a wide variety of print mediums and subjects, from teen drama to relationships, from magical realism, to Arby’s.

KM writes: Kohen Meyers is a tattoo artist based in Durham, North Carolina working at Dogstar Tattoo Company. This is his first year at the Zine Machine Festival, he will have prints, original artwork, tattooed lighters, paños, patches, & pins avaible. Check out more work from Kohen on instagram!

EK writes: Eric Knisley will bring  24-hour comics (entirely created in one 24-hour run), wild collage work, surreal abstract paintings, photos and also a special item: 11-foot-long “exquisite corpse” collaborations which must be be seen to be believed. Hope to see you all there.

Adam Meuse will be bringing tee shirts and comics, including a new comic about how hard it is to make comics, specifically when your brain is trying to sabotage you.

Mark Z, aka ZMan, writes: “I think you have to distort reality in order to arrive at an honest or accurate interpretation of the world.”

Z­Man studied animation, pairing and drawing at the Art Institute in Chicago (his hometown), has been in numerous group shows and several solo exhibitions in galleries in San Francisco and New York City, where he now lives. He teaches at Baruch College in New York. He has also worked as an illustrator/cartoonist, appearing in numerous publications; and he has worked as an animator, for TV commercials and other projects.  

Thomas writes: “I am an artist concentrating in printmaking as the primary medium for my work, the majority of which are created via relief printing. I also like making small zines from photos I take of punk shows and daily shenanigans.”

Greg Steele writes: Greg does a thing called harrington comics. It’s a small indie comics thing from Norfolk, VA.

Check out Greg’s stuff here: https://www.instagram.com/harringtoncomics/

Comix genius Mary Fleener is coming to the zine fest this year, bringing work which the LA Times describes as “uproariously bawdy tales of life on the fringes of Southern California society”!