Before the Brushfire by Ashley Noel Hennefer, assistant editor
May 9th, 2008 by Editor
It is another Spring, and another issue ofthe Brushfire has been created with the hard workand passion of the students and artists of NorthernNevada. This spring and issue also mark a new recordin the history of the Brushfire: eight hundred andthirteen submissions recieved.But the Brushfire was not always what it istoday. The publication began as part of the Artemisia,University of Nevada, Reno’s current school magazine,and former campus yearbook. The Artemisia began101 years ago as an outlet for student expression.However, the Artemisia focused its creativity in a newdirection, and the need for a literary arts publicationstill existed.Thus the Desert Wolf was created, backin the 1920s—a small but well-designed literarymagazine, its cover depicting, among other things,a howling wolf, UNR’s most famous symbol. Thiswas UNR’s first step towards a full literary and artsjournal. The publication focused on essays and poetrywith illustrations, but there was still no true studentpublication for visual art.Interest waxed and waned for several years,and eventually the Desert Wolf faded away. Years later,in the 1950s, the spark was ignited again, and the firstissue of the Brushfire was created, and here it standstoday, flourishing more than ever.Despite the many changes over the years, thededication has always been here. There have alwaysbeen artists and writers at the University of Nevada,Reno, searching for a way to share their work andpassion with others. Students had a vision long agoto create something that would continue to burnthroughout the many generations of students whoattend this university. From the ashes of each ideacame a new and even better publication than the onebefore it, providing the university, and our surroundingcommunity, with something much needed—a freeand unique outlet for artistic expression.William Ace Remas, the Editor of the 1967edition of the Brushfire, wrote, “We know thatthese kinds of things [creativity] are happening hereat the University of Nevada. We know that peopleare doing something in the arts. A publicationwhich would adequately represent these efforts is awonderful opportunity, both for the University andthe members of the community who have an interestin these endeavors.”The Brushfire has always stayed true to itsname—it has no definitive path, and its future, as istrue of all things, is uncertain. But the Brushfire willcontinue to burn where there is creativity to keep itfueled, where there are students passionate enoughto take risks with their art and words.Because once a brushfire is ignited, it takes alot to stop it from spreading.•
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