Over the years, considering the multiple projects conceptualized and/or engineered by New London’s Rich Martin, it’s not unreasonable to call him a forward-thinking arts activist.

Not only did Martin play a big role in dream-to-reality machinations of the Hygienic Art Park and Galleries, he managed the place for years, coordinating year-round exhibits, concerts, films series, literary readings and more.

He also played in several bands including Low Beam and Brazen Hussy; oversaw the Temporary Autonomous Zone (old-timers might remember the stylized T>A>Z acronym) and Secret Theater performance arts spaces; has had a huge hand with Sean Murray in producing national-tour music events such as the I AM Fest; ran a poetry publishing house called Hozomeen Press; and currently operates a multi-band label named after The Telegraph, the record shop he owns with wife Daphne Lee Martin on Golden Street.

Martin’s latest venture, though, a free, quarterly, actual-hold-in-your-hands-and-read arts and culture newspaper called The Cut-Up, might seem, well, almost backward-thinking.

After all, this is the digital age! — and the exclamation point is implied by industry critics and observers everywhere whose doomsday assessment of print media, via social media or online, of course, is continual. Yes, newspapers are having trouble and, more appropriate to The Cut-Up, whose format most closely resembles once-popular “alternative weeklies” such as the Hartford and New Haven Advocates and Providence and Boston Phoenix — all of which called it a halt or switched to online formats a few years back.

But, in an area where the monthly free music magazine Soundwaves continues to thrive, Martin in fact feels like this is the perfect time to start up a print magazine devoted to the region’s scenes.

“I believe we still need cultural artifacts that exist in the physical realm,” Martin says, speaking last week, just as the second issue of The Cut-Up hit the streets. The inaugural effort was published in the spring. “To that end, we want each issue of The Cut-Up to be a treasure to be shared, passed around and, with hope, collected and saved for the ages.”

With gentle but rebellious wit, he adds, “When all the zeros and ones are wiped clean by a solar flare one day, it’s what’s left in our hands that will matter.”

The Cut-Up — the name is a reference to a random and avant garde clip-and-paste approach to narrative structure pioneered by Beat icon William S. Burroughs — is a handsome, oversized publication with, so far, brightly colored mosaic covers and a center spread of work by local visual artists. The table of contents reveals 28 pages of locally generated poetry, short fiction, guest political and civic commentary — and the contributors’ credits indicate enthusiasm from what Martin calls a creative and supportive group of talented and like-minded folks happy for the outlet.

Intriguing stand-alone features, for example, have included a piece by former New London mayor Daryl Justin Finizio on the economy of southeastern Connecticut and an overview of Spark, the new community makerspace located in the building that once housed the El ‘n’ Gee Club, by group leader Hannah Grant.

A lot of the focus is on arts journalism — interviews, feature stories, album and concert reviews, and think-pieces. These range from reviews of gallery and museum exhibits to archival concert photos taken over the years by ex-Reducer Peter Detmold. There are Q&As with rock stars like Robin Hitchcock and Lee Ranaldo; quick-hit overviews on topics from the regional metal scene to the British sound of 1968; and close-ups of regional artists ranging from Maine’s Dan Blakeslee to local multi-instrumentalist Craig Edwards.

If it’s also worth noting that many of the band features are on Telegraph Recordings artists, it also should be pointed out that each Cut-Up has a recurring column called “Record Store Tour” in which an independent shop is highlighted — Redscroll Records in Wallingford in the summer issue and Willimantic Records in the spring edition — and, yes, those would be businesses in direct competition with Martin’s own shop.

“The idea is to create a dialogue based around expression, community and politics throughout southern New England,” Martin says. “One key desire is to build a sense of place based on the incredible creative community in this region. The other hope is to place New London County firmly at the heart of the region. Too often, the rest of the state and people in Rhode Island aren’t aware of all this incredibly magical place has to offer.”

Another aspect of the expansive content is that it defiantly flies against the tendency of online media to churn out quick-hit and concise bits. While the world moves faster than ever, and the attention span of consumers is quantifiably shorter, Martin is betting there are plenty of readers who appreciate the opportunity to spend a bit of time with an arts journal.

“Dumbing down content into bite-size morsels only leads to a less-engaged and less-responsive audience and readership,” Martin says. “For me, one of the joys of doing this work is to learn about new ideas, perspectives and modes of thinking through the folks we’re writing about — the musicians, artists, entrepreneurs and other community leaders who dedicate their lives to one heroic cause or another.”

The Cut-Up is distributed throughout the region in a variety of clubs, bars, businesses and restaurants and, while there’s been a gradual effort to develop an online presence — no point in completely denying a certain demographic that insists on that convenience — the focus will remain on the tactile product.

“We really hope that folks will enjoy some time away from their devices and revel in the pleasure of turning the pages of our publication,” Martin says. “It’s truly a different and satisfying experience in a way that swiping on a tiny screen will never be.”