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For over a century, El Palacio has been a forum for voices exploring New Mexico’s art, archaeology, history, and landscape. Explore the writers, photographers, historians, and scientists whose perspectives have defined the magazine’s pages—past and present.
Arthur Sze is the current U.S. Poet Laureate. Sze is a poet, translator, and editor. He is the author of twelve books, including Into the Hush, Sight Lines, and others. Sze’s poems have been translated into fifteen languages, and he is the recipient of the National Book Award among many other honors. He lives in Santa Fe.
Deborah Jackson Taffa is a citizen of the Quechan Nation and Laguna Pueblo. Her memoir Whiskey Tender was a 2024 National Book Award Finalist and was longlisted for the 2025 Carnegie Medal for Excellence in Nonfiction. Taffa serves as the director of the MFA in creative writing program at the Institute of American Indian Arts.
Cara Romero is an award-winning contemporary fine art photographer. An enrolled citizen of the Chemehuevi Indian Tribe, Romero’s expansive oeuvre has been informed by formal training in film, digital, fine art, and commercial photography. She maintains a studio in Santa Fe, regularly participates in Native American art fairs, and was featured in PBS’ Craft in America (2019).
Marcus Amerman (opens in a new tab) is a beadworker and multi-media artist from the Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma. He resides in Kooskia, Idaho.
![A framed needlepoint artwork depicts an elderly person in colorful clothing holding a round object, set against a vibrant sunset sky and landscape background. [gen-ai]](https://elpalacio.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/Bead-Portrait-400x225.jpg)
BY MARCUS AMERMAN I create many things in beadwork, but of all the things I bead, I appreciate making bead portraits of my heroes the most. My particular style of rendering faces and imagery in sewn beadwork was born out of respect for the hero—specifically conceived, developed and honed with the intention of honoring the subject of the beadwork through their faithful depiction in size-13 glass beads.
