Interview: 5ever Books
We chat with Sasha Francis from 5ever Books about their iMpOrTanT iNFOrMaTion exhibition.
Photo provided by 5ever Books.
5ever Books is an underground publishing house based at Rebel Press. They print, splice, bind and chop pesky dank little books. They describe their scope as nebulous, and their stated aim is to publish punchy, intense, and interdisciplinary work, woven together by a shared transformational kaupapa. The press is committed to realising a post-capitalist vision that honours Te Tiriti o Waitangi and its principles in Aotearoa. They aim to balance their own vision with pragmatism, and to be serious in their playfulness. 5ever Books is also involved in performance art, art workshops, community organising, public talks and related activism, as well as regular book and zine related things.
Sasha Francis is a Pākehā writer, artist, community activist, and publisher with 5ever Books, based in Te Whanganui-a-Tara Wellington. She mostly writes poetry and experimental philosophy and has won numerous awards for her zines. In 2018, she completed a master’s thesis in Sociology at VUW.
Sasha is a prolific maker, loves cooking for her friends, and is very passionate about underground and subversive creative cultures. She came in to discuss both the press itself and 5ever’s associated postering exhibition at the Enjoy Gallery, called iMpOrTanT iNFOrMaTion, which runs from 20 July – 31 August.
We were thrilled when Sasha took time out from her very busy schedule to discuss 5ever books and the associated iMpOrTanT iNFOrMaTion exhibition. For more information visit 5ever books.
This interview was done in conjunction with Caffeine and Aspirin, the arts and entertainment review show on Radioactive FM.
You can hear the interview and borrow some of 5ever books titles by following the links below.
Nagology : an exercise in mattering
"5ever Books were invited by NAG to do a 7-hour micro-residency during the Performance Arcade 2021, on the shores of Te Whanganui-a-Tara, Aotearoa. The residency became a collaborative pop-up book factory: as long as the public circled in, energy inevitably transformed matter toward a book object state. This final book object holds all contributions from that event"--Back cover.
"Through an open call for contributors in 2023, this publication was created in response to the lack of authentic representation for biracial, mixed-heritage and multi-ethnic individuals living in Aotearoa. Everything That Moves, Moves Through Another features photography, comics, essays, poetry and multimedia art."-- Provided by publisher.