Gulf Coast (magazine)

Gulf Coast: A Journal of Literature and Fine Arts is a literary magazine from Houston, Texas. Founded in 1986 by Donald Barthelme and Phillip Lopate, Gulf Coast was envisioned as an intersection between the literary and visual arts communities. As a result, Gulf Coast has partnered with the University of Houston's Creative Writing Program, the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, and the Menil Collection to showcase some of the most important literary and artistic talents in the United States. Faculty editors past and present include Mark Doty (1999–2005), Claudia Rankine, (2006) Nick Flynn (2007–2020), francine j. harris 2020-present. The magazine publishes poetry, fiction, creative nonfiction, and translation.

Released in April and October, the print magazine has a readership of over 3,000. Gulf Coast is a student-run non-profit publication, and all of the editorial positions are two-year terms. In addition to literature, Gulf Coast explores the visual arts. Each issue features two artists, along with short essays on the work from the art editor.

In 2007, Heather McHugh chose David Shumate's Drawing Jesus, which first appeared in Gulf Coast, for The Best American Poetry 2007, and Stephen King listed Peter Bognanni's The Body Eternal and Sandra Novack's Memphis, again premiering in Gulf Coast, among the 100 Distinguished Stories in The Best American Short Stories 2007. Gulf Coast featured artists Robyn O'Neil and Amy Blakemore have been featured in the Whitney Biennial.