Belle Papier is a collaborative zine. Not just between the co-creators, Lloydene Cook and Ava Uy, who handle different pages of the zine and put them together at the end, but also between the co-creators and the general populace. They solicit answers to questions and collaborative artwork and poetry, and publish them in the pages they've put together.

The premier issue seems to be more about the words of others than any other content. There are snippets and enclosures -- things like painted jigsaw puzzle pieces, stickers and paper ephemera -- and artwork from a variety of sources (all wonderful), but the main articles were the responses to questions posed on various e-groups.

I have to say that I like Belle Papier, and this issue is about finding a style and a voice. Issues hence have been more focused and diverse, with artwork from more varied subjects.

However, this young version of the zine is gone. Every two months, Lloydene and Ava print out only 150 limited edition copies of this publication, and when they are gone -- they're gone. Since there are no subscriptions, it's a first-come, first-serve business that has developed Belle Papier into something of a collector's zine -- worth the $4 in content and in collectability.

The zine has spawned a mailing list, a virtual "salon" where artists get together to talk about everything -- not just the zine. To subscribe, visit http://www.egroups.com/subscribe.cgi/BellePapier. Or contact Cook at 1409 C St., Rio Linda, CA 95673. There is a waiting list, since the group is capped on membership, and you needn't be on the mailing list to get the zine.

[ by Elizabeth Badurina ]