Last Wednesday, I met my friend, Carissa Potter, at 6th and Market, to take a look at her awesome newsstand project, Edicola. Carissa and her partner Luca Antonucci, who run Colpa Press, wanted a retail outlet for their printed goods, as well as those made by friends and other local artists. 

We all know rent is expensive in San Francisco so Carissa and Luca had to get creative with their options. Partnering with the Central Market Street Revitalization Program, Colpa Press took over an unused Market Street newsstand kiosk two months ago and named it Edicola.

I love that Edicola not only makes use of an otherwise abandoned newsstand, but supports printed matter. As a printer myself, sometimes I feel guilty about reading the newspaper and listening to podcasts on my iPhone. Swiping my touch screen will never come close to the satisfaction of smelling freshly printed ink. Edicola is “set on challenging the current state of publishing and suggesting we are far from the death of print.” Carissa and Luca are bringing printed matter back to the streets, sorta like the boys in Newsies, only hipper.

Carissa and Luca wrangle open the slightly janky lock and fold open their doors of Edicola every Tuesday through Thursday from 4 to 7 p.m. and on the weekends from noon to 6 p.m. The shelves are packed with printed cards, screen prints made with sugar, posters, cassette tapes, and zines. You can even purchase a copy of The Bold Italic’s magazine!

I’d say the best way to experience Edicola would be to grab a coffee, treat yourself to a ride on the cute F train and hop off at 6th and Market to check it out – I'm pretty sure you’ll enjoy the prints, and chatting with Carissa will most likely brighten your day.

Seeing Edicola makes me wonder what other projects will pop up in these appropriated newsstands? Pop-up fortune teller or tarot card reader? Pop up dessert bar? What would you like to see next?