CAZZO magazine
Independent magazine that promotes self-expression and artistic freedom
2018 - 2020
By promoting self-expression and artistic freedom, CAZZO magazine lets people share their thoughts and show their personal artistic and design projects.
The name CAZZO is a vulgar expression in the Italian vocabulary, which stands as an intensifier word. It is a vulgar word which aims at giving the push to go through hard work and create your own art and share your own opinions (Fallo Cazzo = Fucking do it). Many people have great potentials which they do not use at its fullest because they think it is not worthy enough. The magazine wants to push people to engage more in their personal projects and opinions, which with the help of CAZZO they will get the recognition they deserve.
Issue 1 - Fallo cazzo
The first published magazine, December 2018, includes the work of seven people and touches several different topics. Its variety includes critiques, thoughts, opinions, poems, comics, illustrations and photos. The magazine is 16 pages long and the paper is Cartamela.
Issue 2 - History is repeating itself
The second issue has “History is repeating itself” as its main topic. It discusses the rise of nationalism and populism around the world, encouraging a better understanding of this important problem. Published in March 2019, it features illustrations, articles, stories, collages and photos of different contributors. The magazine is 16 pages long and the paper is Cartamela.
Issue 3 - Technology is changing us
Tackling issues around the topic of technology, the third issue of CAZZO saw a big upgrade in content. 23 people contributed, and while many were students from UniBZ, also outsiders joined, from cities like Milan, Venice and Rome. With a total of 32 pages, the magazine upgraded the paper, going from a rougher Cartamela to a more qualitative Sistina.
The magazine came together with its smaller version, CAZZETTO. This included “gadget” resembles the popular social network Instagram as a printed version of the scrolling feed. It features various posts that resemble the content of the magazine. CAZZETTO purposely shows you an unreadable taken-out-of-context version of the works, so to create confusion and misinterpretation, as a statement towards the increasing speed in which we consume entertainment.
Issue 4 - Will products save us?
The fourth issue is about the relation between climate change and the products we consume, bringing to light many aspects that deal with the climate crisis and our daily life. The magazine is 32 pages long and features 26 people. It features many more textual contributions than usual, such as interviews, poems and fables.
It was released in December 2019 and it features Luca Piscopo’s artwork both on the cover and on a separate poster.
Issue 5 - What personality are you?
The fifth and last issue directed by Fabian, is a take on the MBTI test of 16 personalities. Each contributor took the test and made something based on their result. The final works tackle themes of identity and classification.
The fifth issue came out during the 2020 pandemic, so it needed to be adapted to its times. The whole magazine became digital and got published on Instagram as posts and stories.
After five issues, Fabian decided to end his position as director and passed the torch to a young group of students from the University of Bolzano, who are continuing Cazzo magazine’s mission to give an open space for new creators.
Franzmagazine’s article about the magazine:
CAZZO magazine - The Documentary
Telling the story of how the magazine came to be, the documentary is a fun and inspirational story that gives more context on the magazine’s beginnings. To know more about the documentary, CLICK HERE.
