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Audio Stories

Spanish Springs Artist Shares Western Heritage Through Beadwork

Kathleen Brannon is a beadwork artist living in Spanish Springs who set up shop at the Reno Rodeo's marketplace last week, which was home to about 100 vendors and artists. She talked with KUNR's Holly Hutchings about her craft and her business.

The bustling marketplace is filled with booths selling everything from cowboy hats and boots to homemade fudge. Nestled in one corner is Kathleen Brannon of Desert Sage Bead Art.

She knows many of the passersby and is a friendly fixture here. Her booth

Sparked: Northern Nevada's Neon

Like sturdy maple trees in Vermont or the sugary fried beignets of Louisiana, states have their own icons that instantly connect the symbol to its place. Nevada has neon. Some local advocates for the noble gas have been working to get its spot in the history books by making neon the state’s official element this legislative session.

The work paid off, and Governor Steve Sisolak signed the bill into law Tuesday, but the bill’s proponents are not who you might think, and KUNR’s Holly Hutchings ha

Transforming An Industrial Road Into An Artists' Haven

Dickerson Road is a one-mile, dead end street in an industrial area of Reno. It has a gritty history, including crime, motorcycle clubs and even a hippie commune at one point. Now, it’s experiencing a revitalization and becoming a haven for artists.

A train rolls behind once-gray warehouses that are now adorned with colorful murals and bright fronts. They house hip boutiques selling everything from succulents to bikinis. Inside the vibrant teal storefront of Wedge Ceramics, about a dozen artist

Written Word

An annual Nevada-wide book club is all about nature this year

Nature has a way of putting my brokenness into perspective. In the last half dozen years, I’ve contended with lymphoma and an anxiety disorder. I’ve had nausea, extreme pain, and unsettling, ruminating thoughts. In these struggles, I often need the restoration that I can only find in the mountains. So, I turn to Tahoe. When I sit on the gravelly sand, looking at the immaculate blue water and enormous pines, a sense of calm and acceptance always washes over me. This magical spot gives me the fuel

Literature of the landscape

Since 2002, Nevada Humanities has partnered with the City of Las Vegas to host the Las Vegas Book Festival. Traditionally, it has been a gathering of authors and bibliophiles meeting for poetry readings, book signings, panel discussions and in-person connecting. This year, of course, things are different. The festival has gone virtual for its 18th season, and for 2020 it’s called Virtual Book Week.

We talked to two Northern Nevada participants about what they’re contributing to the festival thi

RN&R • Arts&Culture • Art of the State • Life lessons • Mar 7, 2019

Blaire Zika’s poetry and paintings have served as an outlet to process a lot. But, she said, there were some painful threads woven so deeply into her life she felt like she was on a shame merry-go-round, asking herself, “How am in this same spot again?”

She’s definitely not in that spot today.

Zika began drilling down to find the internal triggers that led to her emotional funks, and a healing journey began. She took up meditation and began doing yoga. Through a lot of “soul work,” she said, s

RN&R • Arts&Culture • Arts & Culture • Full STEAM ahead • Feb 14, 2019

On a drizzly gray Saturday in early February, hundreds of educators from across the state braved the weather to attend a day-long STEAM conference at the Nevada Museum of Art in Reno. More than 250 teachers, librarians and educators from 15 of the state’s 18 school districts funneled through the entrance of NMA. Two Tesla cars flanked the entrance, their DeLorean-like doors spread high and bird-like, beckoning visitors to check them out and foreshadowing that something exciting was afoot.

Prett

Freelance Audio

About Holly

Holly has been weaving tales since preschool, when she created "the gang," a group of highly mischievous invisible friends that kept her company. Oh, the storylines! Since that time, her relationships have become more tangible, and her stories fact-based, all with the same imagination.