Now I Wanna Read Your DOG

Cover photo by Tyler Benz

Every once in a while our boring office days are enlightened by DOG, a zine bursting with good ol' bare breasts, nice looking people (we are all pretty ugly here), furry animals, and purple quads. DOG is produced by Josh and Sara. Josh is 21-year-old drummer of the band Decades and got into taking photographs for party photo websites so he could slink into concerts and bars underage. Sara is 20, studies visual communications, and gets off on painting and rattling pans in the kitchen. We asked them a few questions about their tiny compendium of good vibes that just came out in its second edition, which is inspired by winter—even though this year, winter was nonexistent.

(P.S. If you have ADHD or you just do not like words, interviews, and all-around boring stuff, just scroll down and check out the slide show.)

VICE: Let’s talk about your last zine: DOG Vol. 2 Winter. How would you describe it?
Josh & Sara: With Vol. 2, we wanted people to be able to sense all those emotional conditions that come with the New York winter. Yeah, people get cold and wet, but we wanted to recall how we yearn to be next to someone in bed, that acceptance of brutal nature, or that feeling you get during the first snow—things that are better expressed through pictures.

Your project features a long list of young emerging artists with a precise aesthetic…
It’s really hard to push 22 different photographers to convey the same theme and feelings through different cameras and stories. When put together, these pictures convey those senses of wintertime and the transition of 2011 into 2012 in a way that couldn't be as strongly conveyed by one single picture alone. We're all our own kind of movement and I think what's really cool is that we're all feeling similar things at this time in and around New York.

What about the decision to publish a zine and not a book?
Well, art books are expensive. But that's kind of the great thing about zines, they're less serious, more accessible, you can eat and drink and go to the bathroom with your zine and take it wherever you go. What a friend.

What is your personal opinion on the zine scene these days?
There is really so much exciting photography and art out there. It's funny because the best art that we've found was on our laptops, somewhere online, or often tumblr. Photography-wise, some of the most personal, striking, and experimental photos are right there on the web. Zines are great because of that. They are meant to come out several times throughout the year, sometimes monthly, showcasing the heaping amounts of artists out there, right next door, and the people we go to school or hang out with.

Why did you decide to call your zine DOG?
DOG is a lot of things. It's a loving and furry animal, arguably man's best friend. It's slang for a dirty, sly dude. It's GOD backwards.

Are you working on any new project for the future?
Yes, but that's top secret DOG information. Think multimedia. Think naked girls and dog paraphernalia. Also some exciting news: we're going to be working with Twelve Books, as we did for the first volume, as our distributor in Japan, and are having a gallery show with the photos from Vol. 2 out there in March.

Stay tuned for more info about the forthcoming DOG photo show! And enjoy below a few more excerpts from the zine!