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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).
Michael Shinabery grew up near Neil Armstrong’s hometown during the Space Race, which ignited his interest in space. In 2015 he flew two missions aboard NASA’s Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy, and today is Education Director at the New Mexico Museum of Space History.
By Cathy Harper and Michael Shinabery More than twenty years later, the Space Trail continues to evolve as unknown sites are added that tickle the adventurous fancy of travelers from near and far. A link on the New Mexico Museum of Space History’s website takes curiosity seekers to a statewide map marking fifty two sites across the Land of Enchantment, and each is directly related to space research, exploration, and development.
