Back Talk

Alan says: I am in favor of limiting the governor to two consecutive terms. But blacklisting someone after eight years altogether, regardless of how good or bad they did their job, can needlessly force an effective public official out of public service. Many state governors throughout history have served well over eight years without their constituents regretting it. I would point out that such a system is wholly unworkable in twenty-first century America: we live in the era of the permanent campaign and the 24-hour news cycle. A governor facing re-election every other year would essentially do nothing but fundraise (which is close to what most do anyway even with four-year terms). (November 19th, 2009 at 11:09pm)

Stories on Photo Essay

A slide show of images featuring our state’s classic dance halls, from the John T. Floore Country Store, in Helotes, to the Stampede, in Big Spring. Photographs by Jeff Wilson.
by [December 2009]

Lions and tigers and bears. And cardinals and eagles and pirates. Good sports from schools across Texas get into character. (Adapted from the October 2007 issue.) Photographs by Jeff Minton
[October 2009]

A slide show of images featuring our state's haunted haunts, from the Grove, in Jefferson, to the Baker Hotel, in Mineral Wells. Photographs by Todd Hido
by [October 2009]

From the Guadalupes to the Chinatis, Texas mountains have some of the best views in the state. Photographs by Charlie Llewellin
by [October 2009]

The Sauceda Ranger Station, in the Bofecillos Mountains, is still a working cattle operation—and the home of a registered Longhorn herd. Photographs by Charlie Llewellin
by [October 2009]

For photographer Wyatt McSpadden, the barbecue joints of Texas are soot-stained temples of meat and their pitmasters solemn keepers of an old-time religion.
by Wyatt McSpadden [May 2009]

On Inauguration Day, Midland, Texas was like a parallel universe to the rest of the country.
by Paul Stekler [February 2009]

I’ve always had a connection to bees: I bought my first hive in 1971, and I raised them for honey all through high school. That’s why the disappearance of colonies across the U.S. has hit me so hard.
Photographs and text by Dan Winters [October 2008]

Because I was so young when my father died, almost everything that I learned about him was transmitted through myth—by my mother, by his relatives in New Orleans, by his friends in Galveston. In death, he became a figure that was larger than life.
[June 2008]

Dozens of roses—and not just yellow ones—have flourished in Texas for more than a century, planted by immigrants who cherished them as sentimental reminders of home. Here are a few of our favorites.
Text by Molly Glentzer [May 2008]

Thirty years after he took his first photograph for us—of charming kook Stanley Marsh 3—contributing photographer Wyatt McSpadden looks back on his extraordinary career and tells the stories behind some of our favorite images.
As told to Jordan Breal [March 2008]

As one of the country’s top photographers, he’s captured on film hundreds if not thousands of people over the past quarter of a century. These ten portraits have never before been seen, but they’re among his favorites. Ours too.
[January 2008]

In Bill Wittliff’s Lonesome Dove photos, make-believe has never seemed so real.
by Stephen Harrigan [October 2007]

A menagerie of team mascots at work—and play.
Photography by Jeff Minton [October 2007]

An East Texas prison ministry is trying to heal crime victims and rehabilitate criminals by getting them to talk.
Text by Pamela Colloff [August 2007]

Russell Lee’s rarely seen Texas photographs reveal an artist at the peak of his powers of observation.
by Michael Ennis [April 2007]

Elections disappear into the history books, but the buttons and matchbooks and posters that exhorted us to vote for one candidate or another live on in our memories—and in the personal collection of the state’s biggest political junkie.
by Brian D. Sweany [January 2007]

These practical accessories of the cowboy lifestyle are some of the world’s most-sought-after Western collectibles—and every pair has a story.
by Jake Silverstein [December 2006]

Yes, deer: It’s that time of year again.
Portfolio by Brent Humphreys [November 2006]

The stark beauty and powerful emotion of her photographs are undeniable. An excerpt from a new book celebrating the life and work of Mexico’s incomparable Graciela Iturbide.
by Katharyn Rodemann [October 2006]

The title of James Evans’s new series of Big Bend photographs is “The Camera Never Sleeps.” It doesn’t matter, apparently, that the photographer does.
by John Spong [August 2006]

People have an attitude about the Panhandle, as if living there is a hardship. To this day, they offer condolences when they learn where I’m from.
Photographs and text by Wyatt McSpadden [December 2005]

Where high school football memories are made.
Portfolio by Jeff Wilson [September 2005]

In 2004 San Antonio euthanized some 49,000 cats and dogs—more per capita than any other major city in the United States—using an outdated, sometimes painful method that has been criticized for years. The expression “not fit for a dog” resonates.
Portfolio by Roberto Guerra [March 2005]

Photographer Roberto Guerra on life at the pound.
Interview by Katherine Sands [March 2005]

In the sixties, when stars like the Beatles, Dinah Shore, and Marlene Dietrich descended on Dallas, Peggie and John Mazziotta captured them on film.
by Anne Dingus [September 2003]

Photographer Kenny Braun has been surfing the Gulf Coast for about thirty years. So naturally, when the water's just right, he grabs his . . . camera.
by Katy Vine [August 2003]

To those who say barbecue is an art form, we say, “Amen.” Presenting the elite meat to eat—along with beans, bread, and sauce—from some of the state’s top pits.


[May 2003]

Why is James Evans so good at photographing the mavericks and renegades who make Big Bend one of the most interesting places on earth? Because he is one himself.
by John Spong [March 2003]

Andrew Lichtenstein spent six years taking pictures inside Texas' vast prison system. The result is an anthropological study of a brutal culture.
by Michael Hall [May 2001]

Photographer Kurt Markus spent years tracking down modern working cowboys for his new book, Cowpuncher. He corralled the genuine article at several Texas spreads.
by Anne Dingus [November 2000]

Artist of the portrait.
by Anne Dingus [September 1999]

An exclusive portrait of the nascent Bush campaign.
[June 1999]

An East Texas community’s simple charms, captured on film.
by Anne Dingus [December 1998]

In the Central Texas town of Seguin, Leon Kubala has been documenting life and death for more than fifty years, one picture at a time.
by Anne Dingus [October 1998]

In the suddenly trendy world of World War II wannabes, these Texans are big guns.
by Anne Dingus [July 1998]

As in Hanoi and Moscow, the circus in Mexico is no three-ring extravaganza. It’s one of the grittiest shows on earth.
by Anne Dingus [November 1997]

Captions for the sketches.
[May 1997]

Captions for the sketches.
[May 1997]

Captions for the sketches.
[May 1997]

Captions for the sketches.
[May 1997]

After fifty years of traveling the Southwest, ranch photographer Frank Reeves left behind a vast body of work and unforgettable portraits of the cowboy’s way of life.
by Anne Dingus [April 1997]

Photographer Keith Carter’s latest pet project reminds me of big Texas dogs I’ve owned—some clownish, some serious, but every one of them great.
by John Graves [December 1996]

A new exhibit in San Marcos pays homage to Manuel Alvarez Bravo, the grandfather of Mexican photography, and the generations of fotógrafos who followed his lead.
by Anne Dingus [October 1996]

For the Wilsons of Dallas, taking pictures was a family affair. Today the mother is a successful photographer and her boys are hot Hollywood commodities. Here’s a look at Laura Wilson’s personal album.
by Anne Dingus [May 1996]

One of the country’s top photographers traveled around his home state to capture these stunning portraits of exotic animals on display.
by Anne Dingus [March 1996]

Get your masks on; put on your dancing shoes. It’s time for Mexico’s Day of the Dead, one of the liveliest celebrations around.
by Anne Dingus [November 1992]

Fashion designers are betting the ranch on new Western shirts with styles inspired by Hollywood, not history.
by Anne Dingus [September 1992]

Meet the people who keep Texas' trains on track.
[August 1992]

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