Double XX
“Contemporary Art by Alaskan Women.”

Double XX is the brain child of a group of Fairbanks artists and friends known as SoNot.  Fairbanksans may recall past art events, such as RAW and BIZARRE BAZAAR, hosted by the group.  Members of the group Nancy Burnham, Rachelle Dowdy, Sue Farnham, Sandy Gillespie, Tina Shih, and Sheryl Maree Reily define SoNot’s mission as… “to have fun, to create opportunities for ourselves and other artists, to challenge perceptions, and to push the boundaries of art.” 

While past art events sponsored by SoNot have been open to both men and women artists, the group felt it was time to spotlight the work of women artists in the state.  Previous juried women’s shows have been held in Fairbanks and Anchorage in the early nineties. Much has happened in the last ten years, a whole new generation of art and artists has emerged within the state. Alaskan women have been very well represented in state, national and international juried art shows, but it has been a while since the public has had the opportunity to view a collection of these works.

SoNot held meetings in Fairbanks and Anchorage with artists, art historians, and persons involved in the contemporary art scene as early as 2001. The group acknowledged a survey or juror would add credibility and prestige to the show, but determined they had neither the resources to produce a juried exhibit, nor the expertise to do a survey. Opting to curate a show was a proactive move fueled by the knowledge of what could be achieved, rather than focusing on a lack of resources. 

In 2002, SoNot began actively looking for artwork to be included in the Double XX show.  The response from artists was overwhelmingly enthusiastic, drawing support from regions as remote as Old Harbor in the Aleutians and as cosmopolitan as Anchorage.

Artists were asked to submit possible works that were either signature pieces or fresh art.  From the submitted slides, SoNot chose one work by each artist.  SoNot set a limit of fifty participants, but otherwise the criteria for Double XX (a genetic reference), was broad.  A theme was not suggested or demanded.  Preferred artists were those who continued to experiment and take chances with their art, as well as women artists who while producing strong work, did not have a lot of visibility.  Although choices were made, SoNot considers the exhibition to be a sampling of works and not a survey.  The exhibit is no more or less than a curated collection of contemporary artwork created by a few of the many talented women artists actively pursuing their art within the state of Alaska.

The members of SoNot would like to see the exhibit travel and hope their efforts will inspire a larger institution to take on the task of performing a survey in the future. They think an oversized art book would be a great way to do this.

SoNot would like to thank all fifty artists for their participation in the exhibit, as well as June Rogers, Julie Decker, Wanda Seamster, Penny Wakefield and Barbara Alexander.

This exhibit is made possible by support from individual contributors, the Fairbanks Arts Association, Mt. McKinley Bank, SoNot, and the Water Wagon.