Container is an annual publication project showcasing the work of nonbinary creatives, designed and created by Leeds-based graphic designer Mars Hutton. To date, there have been three editions, each presenting a wide variety of brilliant work from people all over the world.
The project starts each year with an open call for submissions. Mars then collects the images and information and arranges it all carefully onto the pages. They then print the pages, bind and trim the books by hand, and promote the zine edition to raise money for charity and cover some production costs.
Each edition has a theme; Container 1 (2021) was ‘fluidity’, the second was ‘joy’, and Container 3 was ‘growth’. Last minute submissions are currently open for the fourth edition, themed on ‘comfort’.
Last year’s edition, Container Edition Three: Growth, featured 21 participants’ work, and was screenprinted with neon yellow ink onto an A1 sheet of aubergine sugar paper. It was then folded into a concertina and packed into a box, alongside cards with the original unaltered works on one side, and some insight into the participants’ practice and nonbinary experience on the other. The edition of 40 has been extremely successful, gaining traction through social media, art markets, and Etsy.
From the beginning, the zine’s format has presented artwork beside written experiences. In the first edition, this took the form of information that was printed on tip-ins in between pages, with small numbers next to pieces which identified each creator. Edition one comprised of two publications per copy; one with distorted images, and the other with originals. The second edition followed a more playful theme, using primary colours and rounded shapes, and asked the participants to describe their gender in an abstract way. This generated some honest, thought-provoking, and comical answers, which Mars then illustrated as backgrounds for the pages.
Each edition of Container is entirely unique and different to the previous. This requires a large amount of energy on Mars’ part; they organise, design, and construct each project by hand before promoting and selling them – so it’s a real “labour of love”! “It’s all worth it when people see the diversity within the nonbinary community, all sharing something in common whilst living entirely different lives,” states Mars.
Edition three is available to buy on Etsy and last minute submissions are currently open for edition four. Although sold out, Container 1 and 2 are available to read online for free here.
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