Celebrating a Job Well Done.

• Author: Mackenzie, Kathryn
• Position: FROM THE EDITOR

Deciding what to focus on for this month's Letter From the Editor was simple. It's all about the best of Alaska. From our incredible cover to finally revealing the Best of Alaska Business award winners starting on page 32, this issue is a wealth of celebration and information.

This is the second year of what we hope will become a long-standing tradition of commissioning an Alaskan artist to design and create the cover for the July issue of Alaska Business, highlighting the annual Best of Alaska Business special section. This year we were fortunate to work with Lindsey Neidlinger, an exceptionally talented ink and digital composition artist who was born and raised in Anchorage. As a self-taught graphic and fine artist, Neidlinger is inspired by the relationship between organic forms and urban development and how nature manages to peek its way through even the most urban areas (imagine a flower pushing its way through the crack of a sidewalk).

This cover-entitled Miss Alaska-dazzled all us here at Alaska Business with its many layers and imagery that coalesced into a unique mage that pays homage to Alaska's unique and fantastic culture "I really wanted to create a piece that had an element of familiarity to it for the local people that will see it My goal was to make the eye dance between each layer to leave the viewer feeling fulfilled. It was also important to me personally to pay a tribute to the "traditional" Alaskan culture I've grown up with and love," says Neidlinger, who goes on to say Miss Alaska's message is simple

"While our modern consumer culture in Alaska is fantastic and unique to our home, it's important to remember the foundation it was built upon and to pay a respect to the land and the people that were here first. Those elements and traditions are the mother to the Alaska we know and love."

We invite you to look closely at Miss Alaska and find the layer that most resonates with you. Is it the fireweed and foliage woven throughout her crown? The moose antlers standing tall and proud? Or the delicate pearl beading dotted around the hem of the crown? There is a little something for everyone in Miss Alaska, named thus because who...