The Connie Boochever Fellowship awards $3,000 to emerging artists across Alaska. For the first time in the fellowship’s history, two artists from Homer received the award in one year.
More than 40 artists from around the state applied for the 2023 Connie Boochever fellowship, which is awarded every two years. Of those, a panel of artists selected four fellows to receive the funds, including Karyn Murphy and Abigail Kokai from Homer.
The fellowship is managed by the Alaska Arts and Culture Foundation, which supports the Alaska State Council on the Arts. Foundation president Asia Freeman says the fellowship is named for Connie Boochever, who was heavily involved in community theater and arts advocacy.
“As a member of Alaska’s State Arts Council in its first iteration, and a chairperson for many years, she really wanted to give the arts a voice in Alaska government,” she said, “and she just had a leading role in the passage of legislation for art in public places. And this scholarship was established to, to honor and reflect her passion”
Karyn Murphy worked as a naturalist and guide in Kachemak Bay before shifting her focus to art. She uses local natural materials to create her artwork. From grinding rocks for pigments to handcrafting intricate books, Murphy incorporates the story of the bay in her work.
“Kachemak Bay has incredible geology, and so when I do the pigments from the rocks, I want to tie into that so that people understand, it's not just a rock and a pretty color, but understand a little bit more of the geology and where it came from and how it's important to the bay.”
Becoming a fellow means a lot to Murphy. She said the funds will allow her to take more risks in her art.
“When I found out, I cried, I was overcome with gratefulness. It just validated for me that I'm moving in the right direction,” she said, “you know, you put your stuff out there and you hope that it's communicating what you want and to have to have this emerging artist validation means yes, Karyn, keep going and, and keep working.”
Abigail Kokai came to Homer in 2015 for an artist residency and decided to stay permanently afterwards. She started a business selling plush whales alongside her art career. Her recent work includes a 2022 exhibit called “Panda Mick's RV Park and Stay-In.” It contains a miniature collection of dolls in different settings. She also created human sized versions of the dolls.
Kokai says funding from the fellowship will go towards her next exhibit premiering this December.
“It's this huge blessing in advance ahead of you know, spending the time and effort to build all this,” she said, “so I couldn't be happier for how it's all kind of fitting together.”
This exhibit will focus on Aelon Funk — one of many characters she created for “Panda Mick’s.” Kokai says Funk is a rich 97 year old man who decides to go to space, and the exhibit will tell the story of his adventures.
“I think the storyline is going to be more that he's looking for a fountain of youth, but in all the people and all the, well, and all the extra terrestrial life forms that he encounters,” She said, “he, you know, as he tells these little bits and pieces about his life story, essentially gives life to the people that he meets, which in turn makes him the fountain of youth.”
The Connie Boochever Fellowship isn’t Kokai’s only big award this month. The Homer Council on the Arts also named Kokai as the "2023 Artist of the Year" at their annual meeting last Friday. Kokai is also working with students at Fireweed Academy to make and tell stories through puppetry.
Like Kokai, Murphy will continue to work on her art. She plans on making paper from seaweed and salmon skin for future projects.
