Student work from the House of Mouse x Magazines/Zines project, a two-part exploration of authorship, design, and public domain. The project began with discussions on copyright law, the public domain, and the historical significance of Steamboat Willie—the first Mickey Mouse cartoon, now in the public domain. Students used this classic as a creative springboard to reimagine through a contemporary lens.

The second half of the project focused on publication design, including lectures on magazine layout, zine culture, and the history of independent publishing. Students wrote original content, designed their own spreads, and developed graphics that merged traditional editorial structure with DIY zinemaking. The class concluded with the creation of a collaborative zine, piecing together each student’s spread into mini publications.