Airing paper, a technical term in the printing industry, refers to a procedure of paper moisture conditioning to restore its nature and resilience, where paper lies flat in a ventilated space. Offline indicates the decentralized mode of production combining mechanical printing and craftsmanship in the course of zine making, unlike the capital-intensive in-line production in print capitalism. The term further connotes the spontaneous, autonomous, and ambiguous self-printing movement, prompting a dialogue with contemporary cultural production in terms of calculation (jixin), machinery (jiqi), and institutions (jizhi).

While digital fatigue seeps into our contemporary life, (offline) serves as a visual index of disconnection from computer networks. By revisiting the self-publishing movement, Airing Paper (offline) sheds light on the potentiality of the analog, tactile, and embodied medium, which is seemingly out-of-date. Further seen in a dialectic of movement and stillness, the act of airing implies an undercurrent of social transformation waiting in the wings.

Airing Paper (offline): Rise of Self-publishing Waves offers a contour of the self-publishing practice in contemporary China and charts their scattered, autonomous configurations and routes by featuring a significant number of zine publishers' works. Amid the time of obscurity and uncertainty, Airing Paper (offline) rises to the horizon and encounters friends via curatorial practice.

Press release courtesy TheCube Project Space.