Issue No. 16 | February 16, 2026

Weekly Edition Sponsor

PUBLISHER'S NOTE | Denise Leslie

This week feels like one of those beautiful reminders of just how layered our creative community really is.

The Durango Independent Film Festival always does that to me — sitting in a dark theater with neighbors, watching stories unfold on a big screen, feeling that collective inhale and exhale. There’s something powerful about that shared experience. It makes this town feel both small and expansive at the same time.

Then there’s Connor Chee — whose music carries history and heart in equal measure. Spending time with his story made me think about how tradition isn’t something we preserve under glass; it’s something we live, interpret, and pass forward. Writers on the Range continues that regional conversation I’ve long admired — voices rooted in the West, steady and thoughtful. And Barbara Grist’s photography? It asks us to slow down and really look. Light, shadow, patience — all the quiet work behind the frame.

_{Film. Music. Words. Images. Different paths, same thread: people paying attention and choosing to create anyway.}

With gratitude,

Denise

February Featured Artist: Edward Aldrich | Sorrel Sky Gallery

EVENT SPOTLIGHT | FILM sponsored by Durango Independent Film Festival

Where Stories Find Us

The lights are dimming, and the stories are beginning. The Durango Independent Film Festival returns March 4–8, bringing five days of independent film to theaters and creative spaces throughout downtown. From powerful narrative features and compelling documentaries to conversation-sparking shorts — including the inspiring Dream. Touch. Believe - see the video preview below. This year’s lineup reflects the depth and diversity of storytelling happening on screens both near and far.

DIFF is more than a series of screenings; it’s a shared experience. Filmmakers, audiences, students, and longtime supporters gather in darkened theaters and spill back out onto Main Avenue carrying new ideas and fresh perspectives. Click through to read our full Arts Perspective feature and explore what’s unfolding at this year’s festival.

VISUAL ARTS | PHOTOGRAPHY sponsored by Arts Perspective Magazine

Barbara Grist: The Art of Looking

For more than five decades, photographer Barbara Grist has been studying light, composition, and the quiet details that make us stop and really see. Living and creating between Cortez and Durango, she composes each image carefully in the viewfinder — capturing color, pattern, and movement with intention from the very beginning.

Her work has appeared on the cover of Arts Perspective, reflecting a lifelong commitment to patience, craft, and the art of truly looking. Read the full story on Barbara’s artistic journey at ArtsPerspectiveMag.com.

PERFORMING ARTS | MUSIC sponsored by Community Concert Hall at Fort Lewis College

Connor Chee: Where Diné Tradition Meets the Piano

Award-winning Navajo pianist and composer Connor Chee is redefining what the piano can carry — weaving Diné tradition, sacred landscape, and generational story into a contemporary classical voice. From his early Carnegie Hall debut to his deeply personal compositions inspired by Navajo chants and culture, Chee’s artistry bridges discipline and identity with quiet power.

His music invites us to listen differently — not just to notes, but to place and memory. Read more in this week’s Eye on the Arts and discover the story behind the music.

CALL TO WRITERS! sponsored by Arts Perspective Magazine

Short Stories Wanted!

There’s something quietly powerful about a short story — how it can carry us somewhere unexpected in just a few pages. Arts Perspective is now accepting short fiction from writers across the Four Corners region, and selected stories will be paired with local artists for illustration.

No theme, no limits on genre — just strong storytelling and imagination at work. Submissions are open now through May 1, 2026. If you’ve been waiting for a little nudge to share your work, this might be it.

Selected stories will appear in our online editions, and some may be featured in our special Arts Perspective | Arts & Culture Guide to Southwest Colorado - an annual print publication produced with Ballantine Communications in Spring 2026.

LITERARY ARTS | sponsored by Arts Perspective Magazine

Writers on the Range: A Western Conversation in Motion
Some stories don’t stay in one place. They travel — across mountain passes, into small-town newspapers, across state lines — carrying the voices of the modern West with them.

This week, we turn our attention to Writers on the Range, a syndicated opinion service quietly keeping a regional conversation in motion. Read on to discover how Western writers are shaping dialogue across the horizon.

Quote for the Week: "Creativity takes courage." Henri Matisse

WEEKLY EDITION SPONSOR | Arts Perspective magazine

If Arts Perspective magazine has ever introduced you to someone new, inspired you to attend a performance, or helped you feel more connected to our creative community — thank you for being here.

Arts Perspective is sustained in two simple ways:

A Supporter offers a one-time gift — a generous “keep going.”
A Member gives monthly, becoming part of the steady rhythm that keeps the stories flowing week after week.

Both matter. Both help amplify artists, reduce their visibility burden, and keep the arts visible across Southwest Colorado and the Four Corners.

Thank you for walking alongside me as I continue to grow and develop this magazine into the creative gathering place our region deserves.

If this space feels meaningful to you, I invite you to become a Supporter or a Member through Buy Me a Coffee.

Thank you to all our members and supporters! Barbara Grist, Shell Simonson, Heather Freeman, Tad Smith, Moni & Jonas Grushkin, Milt Beens, Aunt Victoria & Jim, Cinda Wassmer, Randy Hays, Patricia Burk, Sharon Abshagen, Mary Zaleski, Jan Wright, Charles Shaw, Linda Barnes, Julie Cooley, & Beth Drum!