Every painting, every song, every photograph, every chunk of clay, every poem, every book, every dance, every artistic creation has a human story behind it. We just happen to have 300+ of them for you to enjoy. Listen to us at your leisure on Apple, Spotify, Podbean, Samsung, iHeartRadio, Amazon Music, Podchaser or your favorite podcast app. The Art Box a lively and engaging discussion about creativity and humanity in the Virgin Valley of Nevada and beyond.
The Art Box travels to Las Vegas to explore one of the valley’s most dynamic creative spaces — the Winchester Dondero Cultural Center. Our guest is Irma Varela, the visionary Cultural Program Supervisor who has spent decades shaping a place where artists, performers, and neighbors gather to imagine and create.
Irma shares the story behind the Center’s mission to nurture community through the arts, from neighborhood murals and cross...
In this inspiring conversation, we sit down with Cory Clemetson, founder along with his brother Chad of the Kids for Sports Foundation, a nonprofit committed to helping children in Mesquite and the Virgin Valley experience the joy and life lessons of organized athletics. Cory shares the story behind starting the foundation, the moment he realized cost was keeping too many kids on the sidelines, and how his team works to remove barr...
In Episode 359 of The Art Box, MJ and Steve welcome Kirsten Pope to the STEAM Center recording studio for a lively conversation about IKA Greens, the innovative business she runs with her husband, Alex.
We dig into what “IKA” really stands for, how their operation is changing the way our community thinks about fresh, locally grown produce, and why sustainable food systems matter now more than ever. Kirsten shares the story behind t...
In this calming, reflective and short episode of The Art Box, Steve invites listeners to slow down and discover the practice of forest bathing, the Japanese art of shinrin-yoku, or “bathing” in the forest atmosphere.
Steve explores what forest bathing is, the science behind its benefits, from lowered stress and blood pressure to boosted immunity, and why it has become such a powerful wellness movement around the world. He shares hi...
In this inspiring episode of The Art Box, MJ sits down with her friend Oregon golfer Chris Oviatt, the 2024 NAGA Women’s Overall National Champion and Western Region representative for the 2025 USGA Adaptive Open Championship.
Chris shares her 32-year journey as a competitive golfer, living with Charcot-Marie-Tooth disease, and how braces, a cane, and a positive outlook help her keep playing the sport she loves. She talks about her...
In this inspiring episode of The Art Box, we sit down with Mesquite actor Bill Wright Jr. to explore how a soldier became a storyteller. Bill shares how his time in the U.S. Army taught him to speak confidently in front of crowds and cameras, and how reciting Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s “I Have a Dream” speech became a defining moment in his life.
That experience opened the door to his first performances in church plays and, event...
The Art Box – Episode 355: Echoes of Belonging
In this deeply personal conversation, three friends, Mary Jane Stiles, Eydie Ann Lieberman, and William R. Marye, open up about lives shaped by an absence: the missing threads of an unknown or absent parent. Together, they reflect on the emotional weight of not knowing where you come from, how long-kept secrets shaped their sense of self, and what it means to reconnect, or not, with fa...
In this special follow-up episode, MJ sits down once again with Linda Villanueva of the Mesquite Cafe Blues Band to catch up on her ever-expanding creative journey. While the band proudly calls Mesquite home, their music now reaches even farther with performances in Las Vegas and Laughlin, sharing their soulful blend of blues and rock with new audiences.
Beyond the stage, Linda is a familiar face in Mesquites' cultural scene, bring...
In this episode of The Art Box, we sat down at Mystery Ranch, with Kym Martin, Outreach Coordinator for Desert Love Native Plants, a nonprofit nursery rooted at Cactus Joe’s near the Red Rock Canyon foothills. Desert Love is more than a nursery, it’s a movement to make native plants accessible while inspiring communities to reimagine their landscapes and become stewards of the desert.
Kym shares her journey from 15 years of teachin...
In a very special episode of The Art Box, we hand the microphone to an unlikely guest , Josie the Joshua Tree, a wise and witty desert elder rooted at Mystery Ranch in Avi Kwa Ame National Monument. With humor and heart, Josie reflects on centuries of desert life: from her partnership with yucca moths to raising quail families in her shade, from Kim Garrison Means’ childhood at the ranch to witnessing Avi Kwa Ame’s designation as a...
This episode was deeply personal for me. I had the privilege of sitting down with Alan O’Neill, a man whose life’s work has been devoted to protecting America’s public lands and keeping them open for all of us to experience. Our conversation took place at Mystery Ranch during my art/science residency, with the vast Mojave Desert stretching out below us, a view that matched the depth and meaning of our discussion. To research, recor...
MJ welcomes back Paul and Linda of the Mesquite Café Blues Band for a fresh conversation about their musical journey. Since their last appearance on The Art Box in early 2023 (with hosts Linda Harris and Rachel Washington), the band has been on the rise, splitting their performances between Mesquite, Las Vegas, and Laughlin. Known for blending soulful blues with driving rock, their sound now reaches wider audiences while still stay...
In this episode of The Art Box, we welcome Dulce Sol, an emerging Las Vegas poet whose words are steeped in dreams, travel, and self-discovery. Since beginning her poetic journey at just 17, Dulce has evolved into a voice that blends the surreal with the lived, weaving imagination and memory into verses that resonate with honesty and wonder.
We explore how her dreams often spark poetic imagery, how world travel expanded her vision ...
Hard to believe it’s been a year since we first sat down with Junior Baeza back in Episode 220 to talk about a dream of bringing a unique artisan bakery to Mesquite. That vision, shared with his wife Sabra, has now blossomed into Fat Dough, a beloved cornerstone of our community.
On this special one-year anniversary episode, Junior dropped by The Mesquite Works STEAM Center Art Box studio on a Friday evening to reflect on the baker...
When most think of art, the first thing they think of is painting, drawing, ceramics, wood working, jewelry making or photography.
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In this episode of The Art Box, we sit down with Mickey Sprott, a powerhouse in Nevada’s arts landscape and the Program Administrator for Public Art at Clark County’s Department of Parks and Recreation. Mickey leads a vibrant and multifaceted public arts program that reaches both rural and urban communities, bringing large-scale public art installations to life, mentoring professional and emerging artists, and supporting youth thro...
Welcome to The Art Box, where creativity meets community. In Episode 345, Everybody Has A Story To Tell, we’re thrilled to introduce you to Terri Fitzsimmons—a published author, longtime educator, and generous supporter of local non-profits.
Terri brings a deep well of life experience and a passion for storytelling that resonates far beyond the page. Whether she’s mentoring young writers, organizing community events, or penning her...
In this special Art Box public service episode, we shine a spotlight on a beloved community cornerstone: the Mesquite Senior Games.
Founded 24 years ago to promote health and well-being through sports for seniors, the Games have grown from a local initiative into an internationally recognized event, drawing competitors from around the globe.
Host Diana Lee Rose welcomes the dynamic Sandy Tudor, Executive Director of the Mesquite Se...
Hosted by MJ Stiles | Recorded at the Mesquite Works STEAM Center
In this soulful and moving episode of The Art Box, MJ Stiles sits down with acclaimed musician and storyteller John McAndrew, a man whose music has reached audiences around the world, featured in major films, national events, and Grammy-considered albums.
With a voice as raw as it is inspiring, John shares his journey of redemption, resilience, and the relentless pur...
In this episode of The Art Box, Steve reconnects with muralist and musician Tanoo, a passionate artist whose mission is to bring public art and deeper meaning to overlooked spaces in downtown Las Vegas. After meeting Tanoo at the Fremont Street Spring Fair hosted by our friend Liezl, Steve knew this was a conversation worth having.
What started as a simple idea for a podcast took a profound turn when Tanoo revealed he’s also a Budd...
If you've ever wanted to know about champagne, satanism, the Stonewall Uprising, chaos theory, LSD, El Nino, true crime and Rosa Parks, then look no further. Josh and Chuck have you covered.
Current and classic episodes, featuring compelling true-crime mysteries, powerful documentaries and in-depth investigations. Follow now to get the latest episodes of Dateline NBC completely free, or subscribe to Dateline Premium for ad-free listening and exclusive bonus content: DatelinePremium.com
The World's Most Dangerous Morning Show, The Breakfast Club, With DJ Envy, Jess Hilarious, And Charlamagne Tha God!
My Favorite Murder is a true crime comedy podcast hosted by Karen Kilgariff and Georgia Hardstark. Each week, Karen and Georgia share compelling true crimes and hometown stories from friends and listeners. Since MFM launched in January of 2016, Karen and Georgia have shared their lifelong interest in true crime and have covered stories of infamous serial killers like the Night Stalker, mysterious cold cases, captivating cults, incredible survivor stories and important events from history like the Tulsa race massacre of 1921. My Favorite Murder is part of the Exactly Right podcast network that provides a platform for bold, creative voices to bring to life provocative, entertaining and relatable stories for audiences everywhere. The Exactly Right roster of podcasts covers a variety of topics including historic true crime, comedic interviews and news, science, pop culture and more. Podcasts on the network include Buried Bones with Kate Winkler Dawson and Paul Holes, That's Messed Up: An SVU Podcast, This Podcast Will Kill You, Bananas and more.
The official podcast of comedian Joe Rogan.