Tag Archives: art

by | October 25, 2019 · 11:56 am

A Picture is Worth a Thousand Words

Posted by Elana Evenden, Art Editor & Poetry Reader for 8.1

Art and literature are often paired together, specifically in the realm of a liberal arts major.  Being well-versed in classic literature and art has always been something that many people hold to high regards and often use as a measure for someone’s intellect.  However, when it comes to contemporary literature and art many people who defend the classics seem not to care. As art editor of Gandy Dancer for our Fall ’19 issue, I have been reflecting on just how important art is in a literary journal. Having worked on the Gandy Dancer team last year, I believe that the art helps add life to our journal. Looking through the art submissions is my absolute favorite part of the Gandy Dancer production process. It is so exciting to see students’ creative eye and work from all different areas of life among different SUNY Schools. Continue reading →

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by | November 26, 2018 · 1:02 pm

The Art of Rejection

Posted by Bri Forgione, GD Poetry Editor for 7.1

Rejection is everywhere. Rejection is inevitable. We experience it in relationships, job interviews, writing submissions, and much more. Some experience rejection more than others, and some people handle it in different ways from one another. When it comes to rejection in creative writing, I believe it helps make a stronger writer. In her poem “One Art,” Elizabeth Bishop writes “the art of losing isn’t hard to master.” “Lose something every day,” she advises, “Then practice losing farther, losing faster.” In terms of rejection, we want Elizabeth Bishop to be right. However, we often find ourselves feeling disheartened and hearing the same seven words, “Don’t worry. You’ll get used to it,” doesn’t help. Continue reading →

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by | July 18, 2018 · 12:27 pm

Titles Are Hard—But We Can Make Them Easier

Posted by William Antonelli, GD Fiction Reader for 6.2

Over the past few years, I’ve participated and had my work critiqued in countless writing workshops, each one varying in both content and usefulness. There’s only so much that university students, most of them amateur or beginning writers, can comment on in half an hour. Yet, if there’s one thing that’s been constant in every workshop I’ve attended, it’s this: when the time comes to comment on the work shopped piece’s title, everyone goes silent. Or, if they do speak up, it’s just to give a non-specific “I liked the title” or “I didn’t like the title.” Continue reading →

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by | May 14, 2018 · 6:35 pm

Four Lessons Joining the Gandy Dancer Team Will Teach You

Posted by Jennifer Taylor Johnson, GD Fiction Reader for 6.2

Whether your passion is writing and editing or you’re just looking for a class to fit your schedule in the fall, being a member of the Gandy Dancer team is not a decision you will regret. Joining the Gandy Dancer team is more than a grade on your transcript, it dedicating hard work and time into assembling the school’s literary journal and learning important life lessons along the way. Don’t believe me? Here are four lessons you will learn by being a reader for The Gandy Dancer. Continue reading →

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by | April 9, 2018 · 12:06 pm

A Review of Jennifer Egan’s Manhattan Beach, and a reflection on the relationship between art and story

Posted by Francesco Bruno, GD Fiction Co-Section Head for 6.2 

I invite you to refute the old adage “don’t judge a book by its cover,” and contemplate the paperback edition of Jennifer Egan’s A Visit from the Goon Squad, published in 2011 by Alfred A Knopf. The cover shows a colorful menagerie of bodies in manifold contortions and postures. The translucent figures overlap and blend with each other, but no single figure grabs a central focus. The book’s title is laid over this image (again, the font is translucent) and the cluster of bodies is put into focus by a background of stark white space. The cover suggests not cacophony but polyphony, its narratives not shouting over one another but offering a variety of perspectives and lenses through which readers can continuously re-interpret the cover. Continue reading →

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by | March 3, 2018 · 12:52 pm

Dandy Gancer Project

Posted by Emily Sterns, GD Public Relations Manager for 6.2 

In the editing and production workshop in which Gandy Dancer is created, we’ve been working on making prototypes or mini literary journals, we’ve been calling Dandy Gancer. This group project got us thinking about the many decisions that go into creating a literary journal. Each group got a slush pile which contained fiction, creative nonfiction, poetry, and visual art. They were then tasked with creating a journal complete with a cover, masthead, table of contents, and a letter to the readers or mission statement. Continue reading →

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by | December 11, 2017 · 10:13 am

The Importance of Artists of Color

Posted by Jennifer Liriano, Fiction Reader for issue 6.1
The newest edition of Gandy Dancer will be featuring incredible art. As it turns out, much of the art is by a group of culturally diverse students. It is important to have this sort of representation in a literary journal because if readers from similar backgrounds see their culture represented, it may speak to them personally and perhaps even encourage them to pursue more creative outlets. Continue reading →

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by | March 2, 2017 · 10:35 am

Our Responsibility As Writers Under Trump

     Posted by Isabel Keane, GD Fiction Reader for 5.2

    “In the dark times, will there also be singing?

      Yes, there will be singing.

      About the dark times.”

-“Motto” by Bertolt Brecht

Do you remember when you were younger, learning history in school and thinking, “If I was alive then, I would have…”

You’re alive now. What you’re doing now is what you would have done then. Donald Trump was inaugurated into office a little over a month ago, and already the arts are in danger. Continue reading →

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by | October 4, 2016 · 1:00 pm

Finding Inspiration

Posted by Pam Haas, GD Poetry Reader for 5.1

As a writer, I’m constantly looking around for different sources to draw inspiration from. Recently, however, I’ve had a bit of a block. Every writer knows that feeling when the muse has abandoned them and nothing seems like poetry, or when the day feels too dreary and drippy to compose a satisfying painting. So to combat writer’s block for myself and anyone who may be similarly searching around for creative encouragement, I asked a few fellow student writers at SUNY Geneseo to respond to the question: Where do you get your inspiration from? This is what they have to say: Continue reading →

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by | June 22, 2016 · 2:07 pm

Interview with Gandy Dancer 4.2 Featured Artist Lei Peng Gan

Posted by Arden Zavitz, Art Editor for issue 4.2

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Untitled, Lei Peng Gan

One of the best parts of reading Gandy Dancer is viewing the visual art. The primary purpose of a literary journal is to provide literature to its audience. However, when visual art is included it can enhance the experience.

For Gandy Dancer 4.2 we were thrilled to feature Lei Peng Gan, who majors in painting at SUNY Plattsburgh. Lei Peng Gan is a painter as well as a print maker. Gan’s beautiful and diverse artwork exemplifies what we hope the entire journal does. To dig a little deeper into the mind of Lei and her creative process, I asked the following questions… Continue reading →

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