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Gallery, a student-run literary and art magazine, celebrated its 44th volume with a launch party that took place Aug. 29 in the Performing Arts Center lobby on the Edinburg campus.
The event opened with remarks from Britt Haraway, associate professor of Creative Writing and faculty adviser for Gallery magazine.
Haraway emphasized the importance of having a space for students from different disciplines to share their work with one another.
“We want the students to come together,” he said. “They’re all doing interesting art projects.”
After the introduction, students whose work appeared in the magazine were invited to the stage for an open mic session, where they reflected on their creative processes and inspirations.
Editor-in-chief Victoria Montes said this year’s issue was designed to highlight the diversity of student voices across UTRGV rather than follow a single theme, a deviation from previous issues.
“We made an effort to put up posters in the visual arts buildings and give some posters to the professors, so that way they can get their students to submit,” Montes said. “And as a result, we got a huge variety of submissions from majors as diverse as studio arts, ceramics, graphic design and photography.”
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For many contributors, the launch marked the first time they saw their work in print, while others were returning artists from past issues.
Anuschka Mai, a history graduate student, said contributing to Gallery was a liberating experience.
“Like so many other people, I wasn’t sure if it was something I could do, but I’m super glad I was able to,” Mai said. “But, being able to really express something that’s a true reflection of what I actually am, is a nice change of pace.”
Esmer Barrera, Rocio Ariel Ayala and Rafael Saenz, among other featured artists, said the launch party was a great place to build connections with peers and find a sense of community among fellow creatives.
“It’s all about community,” Saenz said. “It’s not only helping other people know us and see what we’re creating, but it’s a way of us getting to know each other. I want to follow up with [the other artists] and see what else they make in the future.”
Haraway said he hopes Gallery will continue to grow and reach more students each year.Students interested in picking up their own copy can find them across campus later in the semester.
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