Alexis Zavialoff will discuss the activities of Motto, a small chain of bookshops which specialises in distributing magazines, art books and self-published printed matter. The recently renewed interest in small-scale publishing has focused attention on the renegotiation of traditional roles in contemporary art and architecture publishing. As publisher, distributor and retailer, Zavialoff is well positioned to influence these shifts, and to suggest what developments lie ahead.
Alexis Zavialoff (1974, France) is a self-taught photographer, practising in various contexts for the past fifteen years. He has been involved in publishing almost from the day that he picked up his first camera. In 2007, he launched Motto, a distribution company for magazines, books and other types of independent publications, eventually expanding to a bookshop in Berlin in early 2009. Three new branches opened in Zurich, Geneva and Vancouver in 2010, all within exhibition spaces. Motto distributes 100 publishers to some 100 specialised stores worldwide and, with Chert Gallery, has recently organised two editions of the Unter Dem Motto book fair.