Connie Boochever Emerging Artist Fellowship Fund

Created in 2001 to support and recognize Alaskan artists, the fund was established by the Boochever family to honor Connie Boochever, a longtime supporter of the arts, who passed away in 1999.  The fund’s recipients initially were “established” artists but that designation was changed to “emerging” artists to fill an unmet need in the Alaskan arts community.

2025 Applications open July, 2025

 The 2025 Category is: Performing Arts, Theatre and Music, and the application opens July, 2025.  

Purpose

To recognize and assist Alaskan Emerging Artists of exceptional talent.

About Connie Boochever

Connie Boochever was an avid performer, director, and producer of community theater and a lifelong patron and advocate of the arts.  Her devoted work in support of the arts laid the foundation for many cultural activities we enjoy in Alaska.  A member of the first Alaska State Arts Council, she served on the council both as a member and as chairperson for many years.  A Juneau resident, she founded Juneau’s Community Theater and the Juneau Arts and Humanities Forum, and was a board member of Arts Alaska and the Alaska Repertory Theater.  Her crusading efforts gave the arts a voice in Alaskan government and she played a key role in advocating for passage of legislation mandating percent for Art in Public Places.  Connie’s legacy can be seen in art installed in public buildings around the state.  This Fellowship was established to honor and reflect the spirited passion for the arts she consistently demonstrated, and to further the message she championed throughout her life:  That the arts are important to the citizens of our state and worthy of significant support from individuals, businesses, and corporations.

What is an Emerging Artist?

Emerging professional artists are defined as the principal creators of new work who:

  • take risks and embrace challenges;
  • have a developing voice that reveals significant potential;
  • are rigorous in their approach to creation and production;
  •  have some evidence of professional achievement but not a substantial record of accomplishment; and
  • are not recognized as established artists by other artists, curators, producers, critics, and arts administrators.

An emerging visual artist has not had multiple (three or more) solo exhibits in a dedicated visual arts space (example: gallery, arts center, museum)  except as a college or university student, or has not yet been the main feature of a state, national, or international collection or exhibition.

An emerging performing artist has not performed or had their work performed as the featured performance multiple (three or more) times on a local, state, national or international stage.

Categories of Art

Awards are distributed every other year with alternating disciplines of art. With the establishment of the Alaska Literary Awards in 2014, the Literary Arts category will no longer be a discipline of art for the Boochever fellowships, beginning in 2017. Since the first awards in 2002, 41 fellowships have been awarded.

2021: Performing Arts, including theater and music

2023:  Visual Arts, Film, Digital & Media Arts

Fellows

Please click on any of the Artist Fellows below for more information about the artist, and samples of his or her work:

2023 Fellows

Karyn Murphy – Multidisciplinary Visual Art, Homer

Maïté Agopian – Puppeteer, Fairbanks

Kadey Ambrose – Basketry, Ester

Abigail Kokai – Textiles, Homer

2021 Fellows

Ciro Anaya – Dance, Anchorage

Annie Bartholomew – Music, Juneau

Michael Chase Dickerson – Music, Anchorage

Carey Seward – Theatre, Fairbanks

2019 Fellows

Katie Craney – Multi-discipline, Haines

Erin Gingrich – Multi-discipline, Anchorage

Klara Maisch – Painting, Fairbanks

Mark Tetpon – Sculpture and carving, Anchorage

2017 Fellows

Christy Namee Eriksen, Juneau, spoken word artist

Ruby Jones, Anchorage, performance artist

Christel Veraart, Anchorage, composer and musician

Stephanie Wonchala, Anchorage, dancer and choreographer

2015 Fellows

Ellen Frankenstein, Sitka- Film, digital, media art

John Hagen, Haines- Photography

Enzina Marrari, Anchorage- visual and performance art

Austin Parkhill, Barrow and Homer- visual art

2013 Fellows

Erin Coughlin Hollowell, Homer – Literary Arts

Nicole Stellon O’Donnell, Fairbanks – Literary Arts

Lucas Rowley, Anchorage – Literary Arts

Lance A. (X ‘unei) Twitchell, Sitka – Literary Arts

Allison Warden, Anchorage – Performing Arts 

2011 Fellows

James Adcox, Anchorage – Visual Arts

Michael Conti, Anchorage – Visual Arts

Wendy Gingell, Anchorage – Visual Arts

Ben Huff, Fairbanks – Visual Arts

2009 Fellows

Anne Coray, Port Alsworth – Literary Arts

Yngvil Vatn Guttu, Homer and Anchorage – Performing Arts

Joan Kane, Anchorage – Literary Arts

Schatzie Schaefers, Anchorage – Performing Arts

 2007 Fellows

Annie Duffy, Fairbanks – Visual Arts

Asia Freeman, Homer – Visual Arts

Elizabeth Eero Irving, Fairbanks – Visual Arts

DJ “Buzz” Schwall – Performing Arts

2005 Fellows

Ryan Connaro, Juneau – Performing Arts

Olena Davis, Anchorage – Literary Arts

Stefan Hakenberg, Juneau – Performing Arts

Cinthia Ritchie, Anchorage – Literary Arts

2003 Fellows

Delores Churchill, Juneau – Native Arts

Dan DeRoux, Juneau – Visual Arts

Ken DeRoux, Juneau – Visual Arts

Sheila Wyne, Anchorage – Visual Arts

2002 Fellows

John Luther Adams, Fairbanks – Performing Arts

Roblin Gray Davis, Juneau – Performing Arts

Nancy Lord, Homer – Literary Arts

Eva Saulitis – Literary Arts