Encounter Culture

Are you feeling the pull to be connected this winter? We have some opportunities for you to be a part of New Mexican culture featuring art, history, science, poetry, and live conversations. Plus find out who loves winter and who does not... Encounter Culture host Emily or producer Andrea? Learn more about the Folk Art Apprenticeship Program & Apply: https://bit.ly/nmartsfolk Get details about the reopening of the Museum of Natural History & Science: https://bit.ly/nmnathistory Join Us For An El Palacio Reading:  January 11, 2026, 2pm @ FUSION, Albuquerque - https://bit.ly/elpaljan2026 February 22 at 2 pm in the Donnelly Library at New Mexico Highlands University - Details coming soon. Follow El Palacio on Instagram or Facebook for updates. Read more in El Palacio: Before the Famous Fossils: Ancient Life in the Paleozoic Era in New Mexico by Tamara Enz, Spring 2025 Winter 2025 issue! Your Encounter Culture Playlist: The American Mystique of the Cowboy Boot with Deana McGufin and Jes Márquez, Season 8 TIme Travel: From GIant Millipedes to Modern Landscapes with New Mexico Museum of Natural History & Science, Season 8 Ancient LIfe: There's No Shame in Extinction video on YouTube Big, Toothy, and Conveniently Dead: Why We Are Obsessed with Dinosaurs Featuring Anthony Fiorillo, Season 5 An Underground Love Affair, The Palace Seen and Unseen with Archaeologists Cordelia Snow & Stephen Post, Season 1 Everyone Wants to be Included in the Story of New Mexico: The Wonders on Wheels Mobile Museum, Season 9 Good Heart Work: Poetry as Medicine with Manuel González, New Mexico Poet Laureate,  Season 9 Don't miss the upcoming issues of El Palacio - SUBSCRIBE NOW! *** We'd love to hear from you! Let us know what you loved about the episode, share a personal story it made you think of, or ask us a question at elpalacio@dca.nm.gov.  OR leave us a review on Apple Podcasts! Visit newmexicoculture.org for info about our museums, historic sites, virtual tours, and more.  Our favorite way to fully experience everything they have to offer is with the New Mexico CulturePass. Reserve yours online! *** Encounter Culture is a production of the New Mexico Department of Cultural Affairs, produced and edited by Andrea Klunder at The Creative Impostor Studios. Hosted by Emily Withnall, editor at El Palacio Magazine Executive Producer: Daniel Zillmann Technical Director & Post-Production Audio: Edwin R. Ruiz Recording Engineers: Collin Ungerleider & Kabby at Kabby Sound Studios in Santa Fe Editor & Production Manager: Alex Riegler Associate Producer & Editor: Monica Braine (Assiniboine/Lakota) Theme Music: D'Santi Nava Instagram: @newmexicanculture and @elpalaciomagazine  

New Mexico has a new Poet Laureate! Although Manuel González is well known in the slam poetry circles in Albuquerque—where he also served as the city's poet laureate from 2016 to 2018—he is now stepping into a larger role with big visions about how to engage the entire state in the unique connection and expression inherent to poetry. Throughout his career, González has made it his mission to reach the most marginalized people in New Mexico, and now he plans to leverage his role as Poet Laureate heal hearts in as many communities as possible. Discover more:  Manuel González Xicanopoet New Mexico Arts Manny and the Casanovas Al Hurricane Native American Community Academy Hear more on Encounter Culture: From Goatheads to Grand Canyons: A Love Letter to the Landscape with New Mexico State Poet Laureate, Lauren Camp, Season 6 Curanderismo, Poetry, and How to Heal a Broken Heart with Tommy Archuleta, Santa Fe Poet Laureate, Season 7 Read more in El Palacio: Art and Activism at Highlands University, by Myrriah Gόmez, Winter 2025 Don't miss the upcoming issues of El Palacio - SUBSCRIBE NOW! *** We'd love to hear from you! Let us know what you loved about the episode, share a personal story it made you think of, or ask us a question at elpalacio@dca.nm.gov.  OR leave us a review on Apple Podcasts! Visit newmexicoculture.org for info about our museums, historic sites, virtual tours, and more.  Our favorite way to fully experience everything they have to offer is with the New Mexico CulturePass. Reserve yours online! *** Encounter Culture is a production of the New Mexico Department of Cultural Affairs, produced and edited by Andrea Klunder at The Creative Impostor Studios. Hosted by Emily Withnall, editor at El Palacio MagazineExecutive Producer: Daniel Zillmann Technical Director & Post-Production Audio: Edwin R. RuizRecording Engineers: Collin Ungerleider & Kabby at Kabby Sound StudiosEditor & Production Manager: Alex RieglerAssociate Producer & Editor: Monica Braine (Assiniboine/Lakota) Theme Music: D'Santi Nava Instagram: @newmexicanculture and @elpalaciomagazine

New Mexico is the fifth largest state, making access to art, history, and culture at museums or historic site difficult for many. The Wonder on Wheels mobile museum traverses the state to bring art and history directly to small towns, villages, and Pueblos, ensuring everyone can participate in the rich cultural conversations so central to New Mexican identity. The exhibition inside the thirty-eight-foot RV changes annually and this year, the eight New Mexico State Historic Sites tell the state's story across centuries, from 1150 to the early twentieth century. The staff pack rich history into a small space, supported by oral narratives and dialogue. Plan your visit:  Wonders on Wheels  Wonders on Wheels Facebook Group   New Mexico Historic Sites  Hear more on Encounter Culture: Listen, and Speak the Truth: Collaborating Through Conversation on the Bosque Redondo Memorial with Manuelito Wheeler and Aaron Roth, Encounter Culture, Season 2  Listen to the Land: Art at Bosque Redondo with Dakota Mace, Daisy Trudell-Mills, and Kéyah Keenan Henry, Encounter Culture, Season 6  Everything Past is Present at Los Luceros Historic Site with Rebecca Ward and Carly Stewart, Encounter Culture, Season 3  The Land is Everything: Voting Rights vs Tribal Sovereignty with Dr. Maurice Crandall, Encounter Culture, Season 4  Read more in El Palacio: "The Man in the Sala," El Palacio Summer 2023   "Cathay Williams: In Search of Liberation with the Buffalo Soldiers," El Palacio Summer 2025   Don't miss the upcoming issues of El Palacio - SUBSCRIBE NOW! *** We'd love to hear from you! Let us know what you loved about the episode, share a personal story it made you think of, or ask us a question at elpalacio@dca.nm.gov.  OR leave us a review on Apple Podcasts! Visit newmexicoculture.org for info about our museums, historic sites, virtual tours, and more.  Our favorite way to fully experience everything they have to offer is with the New Mexico CulturePass. Reserve yours online! *** Encounter Culture is a production of the New Mexico Department of Cultural Affairs, produced and edited by Andrea Klunder at The Creative Impostor Studios. Hosted by Emily Withnall, editor at El Palacio MagazineExecutive Producer: Daniel Zillmann Technical Director & Post-Production Audio: Edwin R. RuizRecording Engineers: Collin Ungerleider & Kabby at Kabby Sound StudiosEditor & Production Manager: Alex RieglerAssociate Producer & Editor: Monica Braine (Assiniboine/Lakota) Theme Music: D'Santi Nava Instagram: @newmexicanculture and @elpalaciomagazine

In anticipation of another rich season of New Mexico history, art, and culture, El Palacio editor and Encounter Culture host Emily Withnall and producer Andrea Klunder reflect on a year of award-winning storytelling. From earning national recognition for both the podcast and the magazine to the art of curating New Mexico's most compelling voices, Andrea and Emily share what it takes to craft stories that resonate across time and place. They also look ahead to a new season of conversations with artists, historians, and cultural stewards. Plus, tune in to hear about a few favorite winter traditions that make this time of year uniquely New Mexican!  Join us for a window into the creative collaboration that continues to shape Encounter Culture.  Read more in El Palacio: Father, I Hardly Knew Ye: A Nisei Daughter's Memories of Japanese American Incarceration Strike and Struggle: The National Miners' Union and The Great Gallup Coal War, 1933-1935 Hear more on Encounter Culture: From Goatheads to Grand Canyons: A Love Letter to the Landscape with New Mexico State Poet Laureate, Lauren Camp  Don't miss the upcoming winter & spring issues of El Palacio - SUBSCRIBE NOW! *** We'd love to hear from you! Let us know what you loved about the episode, share a personal story it made you think of, or ask us a question at elpalacio@dca.nm.gov.  OR leave us a review on Apple Podcasts! Visit newmexicoculture.org for info about our museums, historic sites, virtual tours, and more.  Our favorite way to fully experience everything they have to offer is with the New Mexico CulturePass. Reserve yours online! *** Encounter Culture is a production of the New Mexico Department of Cultural Affairs, produced and edited by Andrea Klunder at The Creative Impostor Studios. Hosted by Emily Withnall, editor at El Palacio Magazine Executive Producer: Daniel Zillmann Technical Director & Post-Production Audio: Edwin R. Ruiz Recording Engineers: Collin Ungerleider & Kabby at Kabby Sound Studios in Santa Fe Editor & Production Manager: Alex Riegler Associate Producer & Editor: Monica Braine (Assiniboine/Lakota) Theme Music: D'Santi Nava Instagram: @newmexicanculture and @elpalaciomagazine

For as long as humans have been on this earth, we have looked to the cosmos for information and direction. The Indigenous people of North America used the skies to make sense of their environments and to guide them in planting crops, building villages, and conducting ceremonies. The new exhibition at the Museum of Indian Arts & Culture, Makowa: The Worlds Above Us, showcases a wide range of art, photographs, videos, and more to center the wisdom and longevity of Native astronomy and to remind us that we are all interconnected. On this episode of Encounter Culture, guest consultants for the Makowa exhibition, Misha Pipe and Kaela Waldstein, join host Emily Withnall in the studio to talk about all of this and more. Mentioned in this Episode: Makowa: The Worlds Above Us exhibition at the Museum of Indian Arts & Culture "Symphonies in the Skies": article about Makowa in Summer 2025 issue of El Palacio "Star Parties, Rim Blown Flutes, and Pueblo History at Jemez Historic Site with Marlon Magdalena," Encounter Culture podcast episode Lowell Observatory Jemez Historic Site (and summer Star Party events) We'd love to hear from you! Let us know what you loved about the episode, share a personal story it made you think of, or ask us a question at elpalacio@dca.nm.gov. You can write an email or record a short voice memo and attach it for us to listen to.  Visit newmexicoculture.org for info about our museums, historic sites, virtual tours, and more.  Our favorite way to fully experience everything they have to offer is with the New Mexico CulturePass. Reserve yours online!   If you love New Mexico, you'll love El Palacio Magazine! Subscribe to El Palacio today. Encounter Culture, a production of the New Mexico Department of Cultural Affairs, is produced and edited by Andrea Klunder at The Creative Impostor Studios.  Hosted by Emily Withnall, editor at El Palacio Magazine Executive Producer: Daniel Zillmann Technical Director & Post-Production Audio: Edwin R. Ruiz Recording Engineer: Collin Ungerleider and Kabby at Kabby Sound Studios in Santa Fe Editor & Production Manager: Alex Riegler Associate Producer & Editor: Monica Braine (Assiniboine/Lakota) Theme Music: D'Santi Nava Instagram: @newmexicanculture and @elpalaciomagazine

On the surface, Diné author Daniel Vandever's picture books might appear to be straightforward stories, but the messages about the power of imagination and adventure in his books are imbued with layers of meaning. In his book Fall in Line, Holden!, a little boy breaks free from the constraints of rules and discipline by using his imagination. On a deeper level, the book speaks to the history of Indian Boarding Schools in pushing cultural assimilation. Likewise, in his wordless picture book Herizon, a girl goes on a magic scarf ride to find her lost sheep. This book is imbued with symbolism about the Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women (MMIW) epidemic, as well as cultural references to the Navajo Nation. Herizon was nominated to represent New Mexico at the 2024 National Book Festival. Mentioned in this Episode: Fall in Line, Holden! by Daniel Vandever Herizon by Daniel Vandever We Weave by Daniel Vandever Salina Bookshelf New Mexico representation at the 2024 National Book Festival The Long Walk Livestock Reduction Act "A Brief History of Navaj- Churro Sheep" in the Spring 2025 issue of El Palacio Navajo Code Talkers Deb Haaland's Federal Indian Boarding School Initiative Investigative Report: Volume I and Volume II The Foot Book by Dr. Seuss Roadrunner's Dance by Rudolfo Anaya Blueberries for Sal by Robert McCloskey Chicka Chicka Boom Boom by Bill Martin We'd love to hear from you! Let us know what you loved about the episode, share a personal story it made you think of, or ask us a question at elpalacio@dca.nm.gov. You can write a regular email or record a short voice memo and attach it for us to listen to.  Visit newmexicoculture.org for info about our museums, historic sites, virtual tours, and more.  Our favorite way to fully experience everything they have to offer is with the New Mexico CulturePass. Reserve yours online!   If you love New Mexico, you'll love El Palacio Magazine! Subscribe to El Palacio today. Encounter Culture, a production of the New Mexico Department of Cultural Affairs, is produced and edited by Andrea Klunder at The Creative Impostor Studios.  Hosted by Emily Withnall, editor at El Palacio MagazineExecutive Producer: Daniel Zillmann Technical Director & Post-Production Audio: Edwin R. RuizRecording Engineer: Collin Ungerleider and Kabby at Kabby Sound Studios in Santa FeEditor & Production Manager: Alex RieglerAssociate Producer & Editor: Monica Braine (Assiniboine/Lakota) Theme Music: D'Santi Nava Instagram: @newmexicanculture and @elpalaciomagazine

A long, long time ago, the region that is now New Mexico was part of a giant land mass, and it was located on the equator. The climate was warm and tropical and much of the present-day state was covered in shallow seas. This was long before humans or even dinosaurs existed—252 to 541 million years ago.  The New Mexico Museum of Natural History & Science has recently opened a new permanent exhibition, The Bradbury Stamm Construction Hall of Ancient Life, that covers the vast geologic history of ancient life in the state. Piecing together the story of ancient life in New Mexico can read like a detective story, and Matt Celeskey, Curator of Exhibits, and Spencer Lucas, Curator of Paleontology, help us unravel it.  Mentioned in this Episode: New Mexico Museum of Natural History & Science The Bradbury Stamm Construction Hall of Ancient Life Before the Famous Fossils: Ancient Life in the Paleozoic Era in New Mexico article in Spring 2025 issue of El Palacio Video walkthrough of exhibition in its final stages of construction Gordodon reptile fossil found near Alamogordo Eoscansor tree-climbing reptile fossil found near Chama *** We'd love to hear from you! Let us know what you loved about the episode, share a personal story it made you think of, or ask us a question at elpalacio@dca.nm.gov. You can write a regular email or record a short voice memo and attach it for us to listen to.  Visit newmexicoculture.org for info about our museums, historic sites, virtual tours, and more.  Our favorite way to fully experience everything they have to offer is with the New Mexico CulturePass. Reserve yours online!   If you love New Mexico, you'll love El Palacio Magazine! Subscribe to El Palacio today. Encounter Culture, a production of the New Mexico Department of Cultural Affairs, is produced and edited by Andrea Klunder at The Creative Impostor Studios.  Hosted by Emily Withnall, editor at El Palacio MagazineExecutive Producer: Daniel Zillmann Technical Director & Post-Production Audio: Edwin R. RuizRecording Engineer: Collin Ungerleider and Kabby at Kabby Sound Studios in Santa FeEditor & Production Manager: Alex RieglerAssociate Producer & Editor: Monica Braine (Assiniboine/Lakota) Theme Music: D'Santi Nava Instagram: @newmexicanculture and @elpalaciomagazine

What did New Mexico look like before the time of the dinosaurs? The 3,000-square-foot Bradbury Stamm Construction Hall of Ancient Life at the New Mexico Museum of Natural History and Science tells the story of 300 million years of evolution  featuring never-before-seen fossils from ancient fish, amphibians, invertebrates, reptiles, and more uncovered across the state.  Take a behind-the-scenes tour of the exhibit being contructed in the weeks before its grand opening with Spencer Lucas, Curator of Paleontology, and Matt Celeskey, Curator of Exhibits. (Then go see the exhibit fully assembled!) New Mexico Museum of Natural History and Science The Bradbury Stamm Construction Hall of Ancient Life Before the Famous Fossils: Ancient Life in the Paleozoic Era in New Mexico article in Spring 2025 issue of El Palacio *** We'd love to hear from you! Let us know what you loved about the episode, share a personal story it made you think of, or ask us a question at elpalacio@dca.nm.gov. You can write a regular email or record a short voice memo and attach it for us to listen to.  Visit newmexicoculture.org for info about our museums, historic sites, virtual tours, and more.  Our favorite way to fully experience everything they have to offer is with the New Mexico CulturePass. Reserve yours online!   If you love New Mexico, you'll love El Palacio Magazine! Subscribe to El Palacio today.  Encounter Culture, a production of the New Mexico Department of Cultural Affairs, is produced and edited by Andrea Klunder at The Creative Impostor Studios.  Hosted by Emily Withnall, editor at El Palacio MagazineExecutive Producer: Daniel Zillmann Technical Director & Post-Production Audio: Edwin R. RuizEditor & Production Manager: Alex RieglerAssociate Producer & Editor: Monica Braine (Assiniboine/Lakota) Theme Music: D'Santi Nava Instagram: @newmexicanculture and @elpalaciomagazine

The Media Arts & Technology department at New Mexico Highlands University is a one-of-a-kind program. Students not only learn about technology and design, but they get to implement their ideas, working from brainstorming and mind mapping to exhibition design and installation, interactive displays, and so much more. NMHU professors Lauren Addario and Becca Sharp join Emily Withnall to talk about their program and their 20-year partnership with the New Mexico Department of Cultural Affairs, including their exhibition design at many of DCA's Historic Sites. This partnership and internship program is one way students from rural parts of the state can learn about various jobs in the arts and develop their skills in design, interpretation, cultural technology, and so much more. Mentioned in this Episode: NMHU Media Arts & Technology Los Luceros Historic Site Jemez Historic Site Coronado Historic Site Bosque Redondo Memorial at Fort Sumner Historic Site New Mexico State Land Office Returning Home article by DezBaa' about the NM State Land Office's land exchange program Mineral Hill (Lauren's band!) We'd love to hear from you! Let us know what you loved about the episode, share a personal story it made you think of, or ask us a question at elpalacio@dca.nm.gov. You can write an email or record a short voice memo and attach it for us to listen to.  Visit newmexicoculture.org for info about our museums, historic sites, virtual tours, and more.  Our favorite way to fully experience everything they have to offer is with the New Mexico CulturePass. Reserve yours online!   If you love New Mexico, you'll love El Palacio Magazine! Subscribe to El Palacio today. Encounter Culture, a production of the New Mexico Department of Cultural Affairs, is produced and edited by Andrea Klunder at The Creative Impostor Studios.  Hosted by Emily Withnall, editor at El Palacio MagazineExecutive Producer: Daniel Zillmann Technical Director & Post-Production Audio: Edwin R. RuizRecording Engineer: Collin Ungerleider and Kabby at Kabby Sound Studios in Santa FeEditor & Production Manager: Alex RieglerAssociate Producer & Editor: Monica Braine (Assiniboine/Lakota) Theme Music: D'Santi Nava Instagram: @newmexicanculture and @elpalaciomagazine

New Mexico Arts runs a Folk Arts Apprenticeship Program that pairs masters in a particular art form with apprentices so that a wide variety of arts unique to New Mexico can be passed on. In this episode of Encounter Culture, host Emily Withnall chats with bootmakers Jes Márquez and Deana McGuffin about their experience with the Apprenticeship Program and the wonderful challenge of making beautiful cowboy boots.  Mentioned in this Episode:  New Mexico Arts Folk Arts Apprenticeship Program Jes Márquez Instagram profile Jes Márquez website New Mexico Arts Art in Public Places Zozobra event in Santa Fe We'd love to hear from you! Let us know what you loved about the episode, share a personal story it made you think of, or ask us a question at elpalacio@dca.nm.gov. You can write a regular email or record a short voice memo and attach it for us to listen to.  Visit newmexicoculture.org for info about our museums, historic sites, virtual tours, and more.  Our favorite way to fully experience everything they have to offer is with the New Mexico CulturePass. Reserve yours online!   If you love New Mexico, you'll love El Palacio Magazine! Subscribe to El Palacio today. Encounter Culture, a production of the New Mexico Department of Cultural Affairs, is produced and edited by Andrea Klunder at The Creative Impostor Studios.  Hosted by Emily Withnall, editor at El Palacio Magazine Executive Producer: Daniel Zillmann Technical Director & Post-Production Audio: Edwin R. Ruiz Recording Engineer: Collin Ungerleider and Kabby at Kabby Sound Studios in Santa Fe Editor & Production Manager: Alex Riegler Associate Producer & Editor: Monica Braine (Assiniboine/Lakota) Theme Music: D'Santi Nava Instagram: @newmexicanculture and @elpalaciomagazine

The Virgin of Guadalupe is a cultural icon with deep roots in Mexican and Chicano communities across the United States and Mexico, among other places. Artists in New Mexico often reference Guadalupe in their work—including Chicana artist Delilah Montoya.  A mixed-media piece, "La Guadalupana," by Montoya features a large photograph of the Virgin of Guadalupe as tattooed on the back of an incarcerated man. It is one of the many works of art on display at New Mexico Museum of Art's Vladem Contemporary as a part of their "identity" theme in Off-Center. Katie Doyle, assistant curator at the New Mexico Museum of Art, says Montoya's work fits in with Vladem's exhibition because it tells one of many essential stories about the cultural and historical issues that have continued to affect people in New Mexico.  Mentioned in this Episode:  Gloria Anzaldúa on la Virgen de Guadalupe Off-Center: New Mexico Art, 1970-2000 at New Mexico Museum of Art's Vladem Contemporary La Guadalupana by Delilah Montoya Chicano Awareness Center in Omaha, Nebraska Civil Rights Movement in Omaha, Nebraska National Geographic article about DNA and human ancestry *** We'd love to hear from you! Let us know what you loved about the episode, share a personal story it made you think of, or ask us a question at elpalacio@dca.nm.gov. You can write a regular email or record a short voice memo and attach it for us to listen to.  Visit newmexicoculture.org for info about our museums, historic sites, virtual tours, and more.  Our favorite way to fully experience everything they have to offer is with the New Mexico CulturePass. Reserve yours online!   If you love New Mexico, you'll love El Palacio Magazine! Subscribe to El Palacio today. Encounter Culture, a production of the New Mexico Department of Cultural Affairs, is produced and edited by Andrea Klunder at The Creative Impostor Studios.  Hosted by Emily Withnall, editor at El Palacio MagazineExecutive Producer: Daniel Zillmann Technical Director & Post-Production Audio: Edwin R. RuizRecording Engineer: Kabby at Kabby Sound Studios in Santa FeEditor & Production Manager: Alex RieglerAssociate Producer & Editor: Monica Braine (Assiniboine/Lakota) Theme Music: D'Santi Nava Instagram: @newmexicanculture and @elpalaciomagazine

Join host Emily Withnall and producer Andrea Klunder for a preview of the upcoming 8th season of Encounter Culture. This season features diverse topics, including an interview with artist Delilah Montoya, a tour of the brand-new Ancient Life exhibition at the New Mexico Museum of Natural History and Science, a conversation about children's books with author Daniel Vandever, and a deep look inside the art of bootmaking. "It's cool to think about art in that way, you know, to create beauty from nothing. It starts as an idea and then all of a sudden you have this beautiful object that you've somehow created from that original spark of an idea in your brain." ~Emily Withnall ENCOUNTER CULTURE EPISODES REFERENCED Look Up! Leo Villareal's Astral Array at New Mexico Museum of Art Vladem Contemporary FOR FURTHER EXPLORATION Delilah Montoya Off-Center at the New Mexico Museum of Art, Vladem Contemporary Ancient Life at the New Mexico Museum of Natural History & Science Program for Interactive Cultural Technology, New Mexico Highlands University Fall in Line, Holden! by Daniel Vandever Herizon by Daniel Vandever We Weave by Daniel Vandever New Mexico State Library New Mexico Arts Folk Arts Apprenticeship Program Jes Márquez  Museum of Indian Arts and Culture *** We'd love to hear from you! Let us know what your favorite episodes of the podcast are, share a personal story, or ask us a question at elpalacio@dca.nm.gov. You can write a regular email or record a short voice memo and attach it for us to listen to.  Visit newmexicoculture.org for info about our museums, historic sites, virtual tours, and more.  Our favorite way to fully experience everything they have to offer is with the New Mexico CulturePass. Reserve yours online!   If you love New Mexico, you'll love El Palacio Magazine! Subscribe to El Palacio today. Encounter Culture, a production of the New Mexico Department of Cultural Affairs, is produced and edited by Andrea Klunder at The Creative Impostor Studios.  Hosted by Emily Withnall, editor at El Palacio Magazine Executive Producer: Daniel Zillmann Technical Director & Post-Production Audio: Edwin R. Ruiz Recording Engineers: Collin Ungerleider & Kabby at Kabby Sound Studios in Santa Fe Editor & Production Manager: Alex Riegler Associate Producer & Editor: Monica Braine (Assiniboine/Lakota) Theme Music: D'Santi Nava Instagram: @newmexicanculture and @elpalaciomagazine  

Roughly six thousand large antelopes native to Africa live on the White Sands Missile Range in southern New Mexico. Once small in number, these oryx have proliferated and make for an unexpected sight with their giant bodies, striking black and white faces, and long, spear-like horns. What are the oryx doing in New Mexico? Las Cruces-based photographer, Marcus Xavier Chormicle's research of the animals has informed his oryx photography series. The oryx series was the focus of Chormicle's work during his New Mexico Arts residency at Lincoln Historic Site in the spring of 2024. He joined Encounter Culture to share what he has learned about the history of the oryx in the state and how his project has helped him wrestle with the complicated questions that arise from the animals' presence. Mentioned in this Episode: Marcus Xavier Chormicle photography Deep Springs photography book by Sam Contis Herberger Institute for Design and the Arts at Arizona State University American artist Binh Danh Lincoln Historic Site White Sands Missile Range Trinity Site For further reading and more resources, view the full show notes. *** We'd love to hear from you! Let us know what you loved about the episode, share a personal story it made you think of, or ask us a question at elpalacio@dca.nm.gov. You can write a regular email or record a short voice memo and attach it for us to listen to.  Visit newmexicoculture.org for info about our museums, historic sites, virtual tours, and more.  Our favorite way to fully experience everything they have to offer is with the New Mexico CulturePass. Reserve yours online!   If you love New Mexico, you'll love El Palacio Magazine! Subscribe to El Palacio today. *** Encounter Culture is a production of the New Mexico Department of Cultural Affairs, produced and edited by Andrea Klunder at The Creative Impostor Studios. Hosted by Emily Withnall, editor at El Palacio Magazine Executive Producer: Daniel Zillmann Technical Director & Post-Production Audio: Edwin R. Ruiz Recording Engineer: Kabby at Kabby Sound Studios in Santa Fe Editor & Production Manager: Alex Riegler Associate Producer & Editor: Monica Braine (Assiniboine/Lakota) Theme Music: D'Santi Nava Instagram: @newmexicanculture and @elpalaciomagazine

How many times have you visited the same museum? Whether your answer is "one" or "hundreds" this episode of Encounter Culture invites listeners behind the scenes to hear about the rewards of visiting and revisiting the Museum of International Folk Art in Santa Fe. Longtime security guard Nick Wadell and docent and customer service rep, Michelle Rodriguez, share stories about works of art, mysteries, and memorable visitors that will give listeners a deeper experience of the museum—and hopefully, entice them back again. Mentioned in this Episode:  Girard Wing at the Museum of International Folk Art Santero Felix Lopez Article in fall issue of El Palacio: The Art of Survival: The Aftermath of the Deadly 1980 New Mexico State Penitentiary Riot Amidst Cries from the Rubble: Art of Loss and Resilience from Ukraine: Exhibition at MOIFA through April 27, 2025 *** We'd love to hear from you! Let us know what you loved about the episode, share a personal story it made you think of, or ask us a question at elpalacio@dca.nm.gov. You can write a regular email or record a short voice memo and attach it for us to listen to.  Visit newmexicoculture.org for info about our museums, historic sites, virtual tours, and more.  Our favorite way to fully experience everything they have to offer is with the New Mexico CulturePass. Reserve yours online!   If you love New Mexico, you'll love El Palacio Magazine! Subscribe to El Palacio today. *** Encounter Culture is a production of the New Mexico Department of Cultural Affairs, produced and edited by Andrea Klunder at The Creative Impostor Studios. Hosted by Emily Withnall, editor at El Palacio Magazine Executive Producer: Daniel Zillmann Technical Director & Post-Production Audio: Edwin R. Ruiz Recording Engineer: Kabby at Kabby Sound Studios in Santa Fe Editor & Production Manager: Alex Riegler Associate Producer & Editor: Monica Braine (Assiniboine/Lakota) Theme Music: D'Santi Nava Instagram: @newmexicanculture and @elpalaciomagazine For further reading and more resources, view the full show notes.

How old are the footprints at White Sands? It depends on who you ask. Scientists are currently divided on this question, but the division is one that is propelling more research with the goal of determining whether humans have been in North America for 23,000 years or closer to 15,000 years.  The ditch weed, or Ruppia, is at the center of this debate. What can a plant tell us about carbon dating to determine the age of the footprints at White Sands? What are the pitfalls of depending on an unreliable organic material? Dr. John Taylor-Montoya, director of the Office of Archaeological Studies, and Dr. David Rachal, a geoarchaeology consultant, have a lot to say about the scientific debate about the age of the footprints—and about the research that needs to be done to resolve the question.  Mentioned in this Episode:  Dr. David Rachal's White Sands research papers White Sands field interview with Dr. David Rachal History, Science, Mythology, and the First Americans article in Summer 2023 issue of El Palacio New Mexico Office of Archaeological Studies We'd love to hear from you! Let us know what you loved about the episode, share a personal story it made you think of, or ask us a question at elpalacio@dca.nm.gov. You can write a regular email or record a short voice memo and attach it for us to listen to.  Visit newmexicoculture.org for info about our museums, historic sites, virtual tours, and more.  Our favorite way to fully experience everything they have to offer is with the New Mexico CulturePass. Reserve yours online!   If you love New Mexico, you'll love El Palacio Magazine! Subscribe to El Palacio today. Encounter Culture, a production of the New Mexico Department of Cultural Affairs, is produced and edited by Andrea Klunder at The Creative Impostor Studios.  Hosted by Emily Withnall, editor at El Palacio MagazineExecutive Producer: Daniel Zillmann Technical Director & Post-Production Audio: Edwin R. RuizRecording Engineer: Kabby at Kabby Sound Studios in Santa FeEditor & Production Manager: Alex RieglerAssociate Producer & Editor: Monica Braine (Assiniboine/Lakota) Theme Music: D'Santi NavaInstagram: @newmexicanculture and @elpalaciomagazine

What is art, and who gets to define it? The Convergence x Crossroads: Street Art from the Southwest exhibition at the National Hispanic Cultural Center in Albuquerque provides an entry point to this conversation.  Former National Hispanic Cultural Center curator Rebecca Gomez and street artist Strike have a lot to say about the challenges and contradictions inherent to creating a street art exhibition. By bringing street art into a museum setting, the exhibition challenges stereotypes, blurs the boundaries between gallery art and street art, and invites viewers to reflect on what it means to create art in the face of some of life's biggest challenges.  Mentioned in this Episode:  Convergence X Crossroads: Street Art from the Southwest  Gil Rocha Mexic-Arte Museum in Austin, Texas South Broadway Cultural Center in Albuquerque Murals in Barelas Neighborhood in Albuquerque Illegal? Art Show in Las Cruces Borderland Jam in El Paso, Texas Paint Louis graffiti art festival in St. Louis, Missouri  For further reading and more resources, view the full show notes. *** We'd love to hear from you! Let us know what you loved about the episode, share a personal story it made you think of, or ask us a question at elpalacio@dca.nm.gov. You can write a regular email or record a short voice memo and attach it for us to listen to.  Visit newmexicoculture.org for info about our museums, historic sites, virtual tours, and more.  Our favorite way to fully experience everything they have to offer is with the New Mexico CulturePass. Reserve yours online!   If you love New Mexico, you'll love El Palacio Magazine! Subscribe to El Palacio today. *** Encounter Culture is a production of the New Mexico Department of Cultural Affairs, produced and edited by Andrea Klunder at The Creative Impostor Studios. Hosted by Emily Withnall, editor at El Palacio Magazine Executive Producer: Daniel Zillmann Technical Director & Post-Production Audio: Edwin R. Ruiz Recording Engineer: Kabby at Kabby Sound Studios in Santa Fe Editor & Production Manager: Alex Riegler Associate Producer & Editor: Monica Braine (Assiniboine/Lakota) Theme Music: D'Santi Nava Instagram: @newmexicanculture and @elpalaciomagazine  

Some stories persist for hundreds of years. La Llorona is one such story. Though there is much speculation about where exactly the original story began, it is clear that La Llorona as a legend and myth has staying power. What is it about the weeping woman that has captured our imaginations for centuries? And how has the story of La Llorona changed over time?  Irene Vásquez, chair of the Chicana and Chicano Studies at the University of New Mexico, has a lot to say about why this folk tale is so compelling and how the best stories take on a life of their own.  Mentioned In This Episode:  UNM Chicana and Chicano Studies Southwest Hispanic Research Institute Gloria Anzaldúa's La Llorona story Borderlands/La Frontera by Gloria Anzaldúa COVID-19 version of La Llorona story as referenced in Regeneración: A Xicanacimiento Studies Journal Roots of La Llorona story 2019 La Llorona film set in Guatemala The Curse of La Llorona film "Woman Hollering Creek" La Llorona story by Sandra Cisneros "La Lloroncita" song by Rómulo Castro y el Grupo Tuira For further reading and more resources, view the full show notes. *** We'd love to hear from you! Let us know what you loved about the episode, share a personal story it made you think of, or ask us a question at elpalacio@dca.nm.gov. You can write a regular email or record a short voice memo and attach it for us to listen to.  Visit newmexicoculture.org for info about our museums, historic sites, virtual tours, and more.  Our favorite way to fully experience everything they have to offer is with the New Mexico CulturePass. Reserve yours online!   If you love New Mexico, you'll love El Palacio Magazine! Subscribe to El Palacio today. *** Encounter Culture is a production of the New Mexico Department of Cultural Affairs, produced and edited by Andrea Klunder at The Creative Impostor Studios. Hosted by Emily Withnall, editor at El Palacio Magazine Executive Producer: Daniel Zillmann Technical Director & Post-Production Audio: Edwin R. Ruiz Recording Engineer: Kabby at Kabby Sound Studios in Santa Fe Editor & Production Manager: Alex Riegler Associate Producer & Editor: Monica Braine (Assiniboine/Lakota) Theme Music: D'Santi Nava Instagram: @newmexicanculture and @elpalaciomagazine  

Let's be honest: these are turbulent times for us all. No matter who you are and what your personal circumstances are, it's likely that you may be in need of some remedies or poetry—or both! Santa Fe Poet Laureate Tommy Archuleta offers both in his new collection, Susto.  The book of poems weaves poetry about love and loss with meditations on the New Mexican landscape. Threaded between the poems are remedios for a broken heart. No matter your ailment, these remedios are bound to offer some relief. "With each evolution of each draft, there's just this beauty that was coming out," Archuleta says. "Because being asked, 'Why the heck do you write about death so much? My God, all of you guys--all the way back to Dante.' … I don't know what his excuse is, but I think the reason is because it's a way of embracing the present life that you do have." ENCOUNTER CULTURE EPISODES TO CATCH UP ON: From Goatheads to Grand Canyons with Laura Camp MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE: Learn more about Tommy Archuleta's readings and poetry workshops  Request a reading or workshop from Tommy Archuleta Susto, poetry collection written by Tommy Archuleta, Santa Fe Poet Laureate CulturePassNew Mexico State Library For further reading and more resources, view the full show notes. *** We'd love to hear from you! Let us know what you loved about the episode, share a personal story it made you think of, or ask us a question at elpalacio@dca.nm.gov. You can write a regular email or record a short voice memo and attach it for us to listen to.  Visit newmexicoculture.org for info about our museums, historic sites, virtual tours, and more.  Our favorite way to fully experience everything they have to offer is with the New Mexico CulturePass. Reserve yours online!   If you love New Mexico, you'll love El Palacio Magazine! Subscribe to El Palacio today. *** Encounter Culture is a production of the New Mexico Department of Cultural Affairs, produced and edited by Andrea Klunder at The Creative Impostor Studios. Hosted by Emily Withnall, editor at El Palacio Magazine Executive Producer: Daniel Zillmann Technical Director & Post-Production Audio: Edwin R. Ruiz Recording Engineer: Kabby at Kabby Sound Studios in Santa Fe Editor & Production Manager: Alex Riegler Associate Producer & Editor: Monica Braine (Assiniboine/Lakota) Theme Music: D'Santi Nava Instagram: @newmexicanculture and @elpalaciomagazine

Dispelling misconceptions about street art, discovering ancient footprints that reconfigure our origin stories, and delving into remedios for a broken heart… A new season of Encounter Culture is coming your way October 2024!  Follow the podcast or subscribe in your favorite app and follow El Palacio Magazine on Instagram @elpalaciomagazine for updates. EPISODES TO CATCH UP ON: Science Fiction for Social Justice Prison Art as an Assertion of Humanity From Goatheads to Grand Canyons with Laura Camp ALSO MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE: Tommy Archuleta, Santa Fe Poet Laureate Convergence x Crossroads: Street Art from the Southwest at National Hispanic Cultural Center Museum of International Folk Art (MOIFA) New Mexico Arts Lincoln Historic Site CulturePass *** We'd love to hear from you! Let us know what you loved about the episode, share a personal story it made you think of, or ask us a question at elpalacio@dca.nm.gov. You can write a regular email or record a short voice memo and attach it for us to listen to.  Visit newmexicoculture.org for info about our museums, historic sites, virtual tours, and more.  Our favorite way to fully experience everything they have to offer is with the New Mexico CulturePass. Reserve yours online!   If you love New Mexico, you'll love El Palacio Magazine! Subscribe to El Palacio today.  Encounter Culture, a production of the New Mexico Department of Cultural Affairs, is produced and edited by Andrea Klunder at The Creative Impostor Studios.  Hosted by Emily Withnall, editor at El Palacio magazine Executive Producer: Daniel Zillmann Technical Director & Post-Production Audio: Edwin R. Ruiz Recording Engineer: Kabby at Kabby Sound Studios in Santa Fe Editor & Production Manager: Alex Riegler Associate Producer & Editor: Monica Braine (Assiniboine/Lakota) Theme Music: D'Santi Nava Instagram: @newmexicanculture and @elpalaciomagazine

What does the space history have to do with science fiction? More than you'd think! Among the many exhibitions the New Mexico Museum of Space History offers is one called Sci Fi & Sci Fact: Two Worlds Collide. As Chris Orwoll, executive director of the New Mexico Museum of Space History shares, TV shows and movies like Star Trek and Star Wars were greatly influential to NASA employees. And that's just one example! On the flip side, contemporary technologies can influence artists, writers, and filmmakers. For Los Alamos native, science fiction novelist, and astrophysicist student, Ness Brown, the connection between art and science is clear: "Truth is stranger than fiction." MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE Ness Brown's horror sci-fi novel, The Scourge Between Stars MEGACON Comic-Con International Space Hall of Fame Roswell Museum We'd love to hear from you! Send feedback to elpalacio@dca.nm.gov. You can write a regular email or record a short voice memo and attach it for us to listen to. Visit http://newmexicoculture.org for info about our museums, historic sites, virtual tours, and more. Our favorite way to fully experience everything they have to offer is with the New Mexico CulturePass. Find out how to get yours here. Subscribe to El Palacio Magazine *** Encounter Culture, a production of the New Mexico Department of Cultural Affairs, is produced and edited by Andrea Klunder at The Creative Impostor Studios. Hosted by Emily Withnall, editor at El Palacio Magazine Executive Producer: Daniel Zillmann Technical Director & Post-Production Audio: Edwin R. Ruiz Recording Engineer: Kabby at Kabby Sound Studios in Santa Fe Editor & Production Manager: Alex Riegler Editor: Monica Braine (Assiniboine/Lakota) Theme Music: D'Santi Nava Instagram: @newmexicanculture and @elpalaciomagazine For a transcript and full show notes, please visit podcast.nmculture.org