A total of 54 zines were submitted to the ZINE VITRINE | 11th International Zine Open Call, organised by Kino Šiška and the DobraVaga Gallery!

After a thorough review, consideration, and discussion, the jury – comprising designer Hana Besjedica, last year’s winner Manuel Brajnik, Špela Pečjak, Eva Pušnik, Olja Simčič Jerele, and Maša Žekš – selected the project Little Black Book by Marlen Ban for the exhibition at Kino Šiška and for zine co-production in the beginning of 2027.

The following zine authors are invited to hold solo exhibitions within the ZINE VITRINE programme at the DobraVaga gallery in 2027:
Julijan Strajnar: Moška akademija (2026)
Ajda Justin: A Memory Book (2025)
Karl Kaisel: () in stone (2026)
Jan Hostnik: The Hive (2026)

From the submitted applications, the jury has also selected several zines to be featured in a group zine exhibition in April 2027. The remaining zines will be archived and available for browsing in our ZINE VITRINE reading room at the DobraVaga Gallery.

Jury explanation: Marlen Ban: Little Black Book (2026)

The zine won over the jury with its thoughtful and innovative concept, which translates the format of a personal diary into a unique visual and material experience. Through the use of stencils, repeating shapes, collages, drawings, and photocopies of various notes, the author establishes a multi-layered narrative flow where essayistic excerpts weave together with brief thoughts, letters, and impressions from her surroundings. These varied modes of recording create a rhythm that mirrors the process of self-reflection, change, and confronting one’s own emotions.

At first glance, the zine’s visual identity appears somewhat understated, yet beneath its seemingly unobtrusive surface lies a decisive, consistent, and sensitive design language. Particularly captivating is the translation of the stencil motif from an intimate journaling practice into a standalone object: fluorescent green PVC cutouts, evocative of school rulers and childhood stencils, here form shapes of a knife, a gun, and lettering that reflect the author’s doubts, emotional shifts, anger, and frustrations. The counterpoint between this considered, almost playful aesthetic and the emotionally intense content creates a productive tension that lends the work added expressive force.

The jury also recognized the timeliness of the premise, which understands the diary as a space for logging feelings, internal dialogue, and gradual self-acceptance. The work transforms a personal experience into a more universal reflection on identity, adaptation, and one’s relationship with oneself. At the same time, it is convincing as a cohesive, carefully crafted, and materially considered artist’s object that transcends the standard book format, opening up possibilities for further spatial and exhibition-based interpretation.