The Slavic Girl’s Handbook

The Slavic Girl’s Handbook - Zine Series

The Slavic Girl’s Handbook is a satirical zine exploring stereotypes of Slavic girls and women, based on how they are perceived in society. Inspired by the appropriation of Slavic culture and aesthetics on the internet, particularly the trending “Slavic Doll” aesthetic on TikTok and Instagram (#slavicdoll #slaviccore), the zine acts as a guide or handbook showing all the supposed features of a Slavic girl from fashion choices to lifestyle to relationships, family and men. Designed as collage spreads reflecting a glossy “magazine” feel, suggesting the glamour promoted by the Slavic Girl stereotype, the zine aims to reclaim femininity, while satirising stereotypes attached to Slavic women and form conversations with members of the Slavic community.

Featured in the UAL Society of the Slavic Arts exhibition, Reimagining Slavic Identities, the original first edition (referred to as Vol. 1) evolved as a continued zine series educating on Slavic culture and while also speaking to the intended audience of Slavic girls and women. There are currently plans to continue the series and distribute at zine fairs and an upcoming online store.

Vol. 2 - The Cultural History of the Slavic Woman

Vol. 2 of the Slavic Girl's Handbook series tells the history of how Slavic women have been culturally perceived across different eras from the Soviet Union, pre- and post-Cold War, from Russian literature to the era of Slavic supermodels in the 2000s. To keep line with Vol. 2’s more serious subject matter, I kept the design more simple and in comparison with the satirical first edition. This zine is an experimentation with riso print, testing out different coloured prints including pink, keeping with Vol. 1’s aesthetic and it’s “reclaimed femininity”, and dual coloured yellow and blue (blending into green).

Vol. 3 - Slavic Countries

Vol. 3 follows the “educational” narrative, explaining the differences between West, East and South Slavic countries, including their geographical regions, languages, religion and culture. The aim is to inform the reader that Slavic culture isn’t just one thing, rather different traditions, languages, cultures and patterns that shouldn’t be unified into one concept. The making of the zine returned to collage spreads that speak for the diversity of different Slavic cultures and languages, in addition to some infographic design, including maps of West, East and South Slavic countries.

Vol. 4 - Slavic Women in Conversation

Vol. 4 features a set of responses to a shared survey, asking Slavic girls to share their experiences of how they are perceived through the Western gaze, experiences of harmful stereotyping, and what makes them most proud to be Slavic. The page spreads show the questions asked along with the responses, shared by girls representing different Slavic countries from Poland to Bosnia & Herzegovina. These conversations explore the Slavic diaspora in the UK and abroad, building upon a community formed by shared experience and cultural traditions. Unlike the previous collage spreads, Vol. 4 is the first in the series to be fully digitally designed.