Hidden artistic expression will be revealed in the Secret Garden at ASU's LUX Undergraduate Creative Review coffee night this Wednesday at 6 p.m.
LUX is a student-run magazine sponsored by Barrett, the Honors College. However, students don't need to be part of the honors college community to submit their work. The collected pieces are published once each year in the spring. LUX is currently working on its 20th edition, noting its 20th year as a community.
English senior and editor-in-chief Shelby Heinrich is going on three years with the publication.
"We take students' creative work, review it and decide which of that is the best," Heinrich said. "We publish fiction, poetry, creative non-fiction, art, music and film. We are more so a journal than a magazine. It is exclusively restricted for undergraduate students."
Those who want their creative work published in the magazine must submit it to LUX before Oct. 30.
Speaking of International Coffee Day...
Don't forget to mark your calendars for Lux's Annual Coffee Night,... http://t.co/ZMjVVsa505
— LuxMag (@LuxMag) September 29, 2015
Every year the organization decides to host its event in the Secret Garden because of the location's ability to take students out of the classroom mindset.
"It's become a tradition, it's always been the spot," Heinrich said. "I think it was originally chosen because it's on campus so students can usually access it. They know where it is but there is still an allure of the Secret Garden. It creates a really nice closed-off atmosphere."
Assistant editor-in-chief and creative writing senior Michael Cohen will be the emcee for the night. He said students will not only enjoy the atmosphere, but the featured talent as well.
"One thing that I think makes us stand out is the fact that we include music and film as opposed to just print," Cohen said. "I think it's really cool we are able to use music and film to sort of show a wider range of talent on ASU's campus. Going with the coffee night as well, it's fun to have musicians come and it's really high energy."
The night offers a space to students who may perform whatever they want. After the setlist of previously submitted work is complete, the floor will open to the public. Poetry slams, dancing and acoustic sets alike are all welcome at the event.
Theater graduate student Fate Meh Madani said the only reason she wouldn't join the open mic is that she needs more time to practice, but showed interest in attending the event to see the performances.
"I like going to the garden, my office is there," Madani said. "I attended New Year there, we had food, we danced and we had performance."
According to a Facebook post in the event page, the turnout is a lot bigger than expected. The magazine asks attendees to be aware that there may not be seating available due to the large number coming. It is advised to bring a blanket, grab an extra chair or come early to snag a spot.
Cohen said he believes students should take time out of their evening to not only admire the talent of their classmates but to enjoy the free food provided as well.
"We've got refreshments, coffee and snacks and if anyone wants to come over and enjoy some coffee and listen to some music, it's a cool way to do it," he said. "It's all people who are also students. You may see friends or people you know from campus. It's a cool way to promote a lot of creativity going on at ASU."
Related Links:
The world through their eyes: Trans* student experiences college, life
DJ Party Favor and Red Bull bring a silent rave to The Secret Garden
Reach the reporter at rsantist@asu.edu or follow @ryanerica18 on Twitter.
Like The State Press on Facebook and follow @statepress on Twitter.
