The Art Box

In this episode of The Art Box, we sit down with Marie Alvery, the reigning 2025 Ms. Senior Mesquite, along with Becky Boyd, the longtime leader and administrator of the Ms. Senior Mesquite Pageant in Mesquite.

Marie shares her personal experience as this year’s titleholder and how participating in the pageant has opened doors to new friendships, community service, and personal growth. Becky offers insight into the heart behind the...

Once again it was a beautiful day at the East Fremont Street Art Fair, hosted by The Art Box by Liezl in the East Fremont Street Arts District. The day was filled with music, creativity, friends, and art everywhere you turned.

For me, it was especially fun to host a small gathering of poets at the open mic, sharing words and stories right in the middle of the hustle, bustle, and joyful noise that only a street fair can bring.

Frien...

At the 41st Annual Cowboy Poetry Gathering in Elko, we sit down with Brad McMullen, the Nevada Arts Council’s Folklife Specialist and Nevada State Folklorist, to explore a simple but powerful idea: oral storytelling is art.

From cowboy poetry stages to kitchen tables, Brad reminds us that stories passed from voice to voice carry history, identity, humor, and hard-earned wisdom. We talk about what makes a story “folk,” why tradition...

We slipped out of our remote recording perch in the Cedar Media Room and wandered over to the Conference Center to spend some time with our friend Gus Brackett.

Gus wears a lot of hats — rancher, husband, dad, columnist, young adult author — and I’m proud to add friend to that list.

The plan? A quick five-minute update.

The reality? An hour-long conversation that I didn’t want to end.

Since I’d left the “official” recording gear ba...

Sometimes the best conversations aren’t scheduled — they just happen.

At the 41st Annual Cowboy Poetry Gathering in Elko, Nevada, we rolled into the parking lot and, as luck would have it, arrived at the exact same time as our friends from Travel Nevada, Megg Mueller, Ali Anderson, and Alexandria Olivares-Wenzel. What started as a quick hello turned into an impromptu Art Box episode celebrating storytelling, sense of place, and the...

We were delighted to discover Leigh Ratterman during a Poetry Open Mic session. Her prose lives playfully on the “I’m just learning to be a cowboy” side of the ledger—light, airy, self-aware, and full of charm. There’s an authenticity to her voice that draws you in right away.

Leigh has a wonderful story to tell and is so easy to visit with that we’re already hoping she’ll return for a full-length episode. We have a feeling our lis...

We first met Larry four years ago at the Gathering, sharing the media room in the Elko Convention Hall. From that very first conversation, it was clear, Larry always has a story ready to tell. This year, I was lucky enough to capture three of them on the recorder. Don’t get too excited just yet, we’re releasing one for now, and saving the other two for our Harvest of Thought 2026 special coming this October.

Larry Hillberg has been...

In our little hometown of Mesquite, creativity is always brewing around Mesquite Plaza, especially in the space between Juniper Outpost and the STEAM Center. This is the story of how three friends came together to craft a song that captures the spirit of our town, fueled by laughter, wordplay, and the magic that happens when you bring a talented singer into the mix.

Yes, we know Episode 417 is a bit out of order. Between wrapping u...

Recorded live at the 41st National Cowboy Poetry Gathering, this episode of The Art Box features a thoughtful conversation with filmmaker Gary Milliken and his wife Gail about Gary’s evocative film Cowboy Meditations. The film centers on cowboy and poet Dick Gibford, capturing his words, spirit, and reflections on life, the land, and the enduring traditions of the West. Blending poetry, imagery, and the quiet rhythm of cowboy philo...

In this episode, we ride along with Montana storyteller and musician Ben Larson, whose work lives somewhere between western folk tradition and what he calls interstellar honkytonk. From tales of family, friends, and life on the road to reflections shaped by years spent working outdoors, Ben’s songs and writing capture the spirit of the modern rural West with honesty and heart. Broadcasting from his home base in Philipsburg, Ben has...

In an absolute delight of an episode of The Art Box, we sit down with Susan Thiriot, director of the Southern Nevada Symphony Orchestra, as she prepares for the upcoming “A New World” concert on February 28. With over forty years of musical experience and one of the few female conductors in the nation, Thiriot shares her passion for inspiring confidence in young musicians now joining the orchestra in record numbers. Blending season...

In Episode 401 of The Art Box, we welcome Jessica Schley, writer, rider, realtor, rancher, and fierce advocate for the land.

Raised on a multigenerational working cattle and horse ranch in California’s Happy Canyon, Jessica grew up steeped in old cowboy stories, ranching traditions, and a deep respect for rangelands. Her latest book, Roots & Resilience: California Ranchers in Their Own Words, brings together the voices of 17 ra...

Episode 400 feels like a milestone worth celebrating, and we couldn’t think of a more fitting guest than Gwen Reid, pure solid gold.

Hailing from Placerville, California, Gwen Reid is a cowboy poet whose life has been as full and layered as the stories she tells. A proud mother of nine children, Gwen brings decades of lived experience to the page, crafting poetry that reflects family, faith, grit, humor, and the enduring spirit of ...

At the 41st National Cowboy Poetry Gathering in Elko, Nevada, we sit down with Idaho cowboy poet Gary Sisk, a man whose words carry the quiet weight of memory and the warmth of family.

In this heartfelt episode, Gary shares a tender poem about his grandmother, a steady presence in his young life, full of grace, humor, and understanding. With the rhythm of the range and the softness of recollection, Gary tells the story of a time wh...

From memories of Arizona to the wide-open ranges of Utah and Nevada, Kathy Smith carries the West in her bones and in her poetry.

Kathy sits down to share how a fifth-generation ranching upbringing shaped her voice, her grit, and her storytelling. Raised in a world where hard work, heartbreak, humor, and heritage are woven together like rawhide, Kathy draws from lived experience, her own and those of the people she loves, to create...

In this episode of The Art Box, we welcome Bridget Hayes, Digital Literacy Specialist with the Sonoma County Library. We first experienced Bridget during the second open mic session and were captivated by the depth and honesty in her poetry.

As an educator passionate about the intersection of people and technology, Bridget shares why libraries are becoming essential spaces for digital awareness and empowerment. She also gives us in...

In this episode of The Art Box, we sit down with a 5th-generation Utah rancher, devoted husband, father, grandfather, and cowboy poet. He writes the stories of those who came before him and the working ranch families of today, determined to keep their lives, struggles, humor, and grit alive through verse.

Inspired in 1983 after hearing cowboy poet Scott McKendrick recite at his high school, he discovered that poetry wasn’t just som...

Our second episode from the 41st National Cowboy Poetry Gathering in Elko, Nevada features a conversation with Ben Parks of American Cowboy Radio — a familiar voice worldwide to many who follow Western culture, music, and storytelling.

Broadcasting from the heart of the Gathering, we talk with Ben about the enduring importance of radio in preserving and promoting cowboy poetry, Western music, and rural traditions. In a fast-moving ...