Contributors

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.

A man with short gray hair and glasses, wearing a collared shirt, looks at the camera against a black background.

Arthur Sze

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.

Woman with long dark hair and sunglasses wearing a textured rust-colored top and a green stone necklace, standing against a plain light background.

Deborah Jackson Taffa

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.

A woman with straight brown hair wearing a dark turtleneck and long, beaded earrings poses against a plain white background.

Cara Romero

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).

Brandon Brown

Brandon Brown (he/they) is a former PR Specialist for the New Mexico Department of Cultural Affairs. They also write speculative fiction with an interest in shifting climates and bodies. For some years, he has been very focused on stories about a strange small town called Brittle. Brandon holds an MFA in Writing from the Vermont College of Fine Arts and now serves as the Director of Student Affairs & Success for the college, which is now affiliated with CalArts.

Photograph by Tira Howard

Apple Glow

In late September, Tira Howard and I chased the light around Los Luceros Historic Site. Tira works on contract for the Department of Cultural Affairs and frequently takes gorgeous photos of our museums and historic sites. You might recognize her work from former El Palacio editor Charlotte Jusinski’s story on Bosque Redondo Memorial in the Summer 2022 issue. We like working with Tira because she understands that New Mexico’s story is complicated and that in service to the people of our state, we have to see the world through many different lenses.