Mary Jane Alexander (born July 18, 1961) is an American writer and photographer, playwright, poet, and lyricist who documents people and places of the American West, with an emphasis on centenarians and American Indian culture. She was inducted into the Oklahoma Journalism Hall of Fame in 2019."9 inductees, 2 lifetime achievements being honored by Oklahoma Journalism Hall of Fame" Edmond Sun. 6 March 2019. https://www.edmondsun.com/news/local_news/inductees-lifetime-achievement-being-honored-by-oklahoma-journalism-hall-of/article_c94f4478-4031-11e9-a878-8fb42706d09b.html Retrieved 14 May 2019 During the pandemic, her work expanded into site-specific public art installations focusing on text and soundscapes that "amplify and illuminate facets of our collective shadowed history."
Early life and education Alexander is a dual citizen of Canada and the United States, raised in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. She attended a two-room schoolhouse before graduating from Vassar College and Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.
Career She is a veteran of the Associated Press in New York City and former head of the journalism department of Saint Michael's College in Vermont.Alexander, "Salt of the Red Earth". op cit.
Documentary work Alexander "combines the vision of an artist with the skills of a storyteller", according to the International Photography Hall of Fame and Museum. Retrieved 30 November 2009 Her photographs have been featured in more than 20 solo shows since 2006, including at the Oklahoma State Capitol, the Red Earth Museum, and the Main Gallery of the International Photography Hall of Fame. Her iconic portrait of Thomas Jefferson Brown, 103, was named one of the top photographs in Oklahoma history by the editors of Oklahoma Today magazine."Oklahoma Today". July/August 2007. Volume 57, Number 4.
She is author and illustrator of two books: Salt of the Red Earth: A Century of Wit and Wisdom from Oklahoma's Elders, portraits and interviews with 100 centenarians, including dozens born in Indian TerritoryAlexander, M.J. Salt of the Red Earth: A Century of Wit and Wisdom from Oklahoma's Elders. Published by the Oklahoma Heritage Association, Oklahoma City, 2007. and Portrait of a Generation - Children of Oklahoma: Sons and Daughters of the Red Earth featuring interviews with and environmental portraits of more than 250 Oklahomans from varied walks of life.Alexander, M.J. Portrait of a Generation - Children of Oklahoma: Sons and Daughters of the Red Earth. Published by Southwestern Publishing, Oklahoma City, 2010. The book launch and opening exhibit for Portrait of a Generation were hosted by the Oklahoma City Museum of Art; a collection of 36 of Alexander's fine art portraits was shown in the OKCMOA Founders' Gallery in 2011.Spears, Leslie A. Portrait of a Generation. Oklahoma City Museum of Art Press Room. http://www.okcmoa.com/press-room/portrait-of-a-generation , retrieved March 12, 2011 The book was a finalist in two categoriesWatts, James D., Jr. "Oklahoma Book Awards Name Finalists". Tulsa World. February 27, 2011. http://www.tulsaworld.com/scene/article.aspx?subjectid=67&articleid=20110227_67_G4_Former684743 Retrieved March 1, 2011. and selected as top young adult book of the year at the 2011 Oklahoma Book Awards, sponsored by the Oklahoma Center for the Book.Klinka, Karen. "Oklahoma Book Awards Honor State Authors". The Oklahoman. April 10, 2011. http://newsok.com/oklahoma-authors-receive-honors/article/3557218 Retrieved April 11, 2011.Oklahoma Department of Libraries: Oklahoma Center for the Book. "2011 Oklahoma Book Award Winners" http://www.odl.state.ok.us/ocb/11win.htm
Exhibitions Alexander and Knight collaborated on the European debut of "Oklahoma", a 2018 retrospective encompassing 20 years of interviews and photographs. The exhibit included more than 100 images accompanied by a sound installation created by Knight in The Crypt Gallery of London.
Reception to the work inspired the multimedia project "Quotelahoma," where Alexander combined image and text to create "mash-ups of decontextualized lyrics and Oklahoma photographs, combined with some modern signs, vernacular sayings and quotes excerpted from interviews from around the state." Her street-art posters were installed in urban centers of Europe, becoming part of what she termed a "multi-layered, multi-lingual urban artscape of protest and proclamation". The 100-piece solo exhibit A Dream Waiting to Unfold: Portraits of Oklahoma by M.J. Alexander, was featured in Fall 2023 at the Crystal Bridge Conservatory Art Gallery of the Myriad Botanical Gardens.
In June 2024, the Smithsonian Institution's Hirshhorn Museum featured "Echoes of an Ancient Sun," a new public art work by Alexander and Knight, in the exhibition Sound Scene 2024: Solstice. The museum described the installation as "an interactive GPS-powered experience featuring on-site field recordings and evocative soundscapes inspired by the history and mysteries of Oklahoma’s Spiro Mounds."
Critical acclaim Alexander was honored at the 2009 UNESCO-sponsored World Humanity Photography Awards in Guangzhou, China, for her photographic series on Apache Crown Dancers.Warlick-Moore, Heather. "Portrait More Than Sum of Parts for Oklahoman". The Daily Oklahoman, 17 November 2009. http://newsok.com/portrait-more-than-sum-of-parts-for-oklahoman/article/3417906 Retrieved 30 November 2009 Of her ongoing portrait series of indigenous peoples, a reviewer wrote: "Alexander’s imagery moves beyond stereotypes to reflect not only a difficult and challenging past but today’s American Indian renaissance and hopeful future….[offering] deep connection to the ancient and modern and to human transience. Now and then the earth shifts and if we're looking, art such as this can bring indescribable joy in the simple act of connecting to the human spirit. Such is the gift of Alexander's portraits."Struby, Shauna. Wisdom and Modern Renaissance in American Indian Portraits. Travel Oklahoma. Retrieved January 12, 2010.
"M.J. Alexander has a way of seeing the world that shows it to you," according to the Alice Walker. "The layers of it that are sometimes ignored or overlooked, especially in our country. A brilliant photographer." Suzanne Tate, executive director of the Oklahoma Arts Council, calls Alexander "a transcendent visual storyteller...Her distinct style and abilities as an artist make her an invaluable cultural asset." Heidi Evans of the New York Daily News calls the work "remarkable, moving photographs and words that reveal the inner lives and quiet power of ordinary people -- people you might otherwise pass by. M.J. Alexander shows the poetry deeply rooted in the Oklahoma -- and American -- landscape."Portrait of a Generation. Back cover.
From a public radio feature on Alexander's "Salt of the Red Earth" centenarian project: "Many of us who work in radio would say that hearing the undoctored human voice is about as intimate as you can get. But take one look at M.J. Alexander’s stunning sepia-toned portraits of Oklahomans over 100 years old, and there’s a certain timeless quality that seems to capture the essence of who these people are for all eternity."Gurian, Scott. Salt of the Red Earth. KGOU, Oklahoma Public Radio. Broadcast Jan. 10. 2007. http://www.radioexchange.org/pieces/16122-salt-of-the-red-earth Retrieved Jan. 8, 2010.
From a 2010 feature on the release of her second book: "The true storytellers mine deep into the hearts and souls of their subjects...M.J. Alexander knows well the power of storytelling that uses both words and images. This month sees the release of an extraordinary new book by the award-winning Oklahoma City photographer and writer, as she continues her exploration of the people who are the heart and soul of her adopted home state."
Alexander's writing and photo features have been recognized with several awards from the Society of Professional Journalists.Society of Professional Journalists Awards, Oklahoma Chapter. 2009-10 list: http://www.okspj.com/SPJ_AwardsBook_web.pdf 2008-09 catalog: Retrieved March 5, 2010. Her portraits of Alice Walker and Gloria Steinem were featured on the cover of the Fall 2009 issue of Ms. magazine, commemorating Steinem’s 75th birthday.Wilkinson, April. "Uncommon Portraits." The Journal Record, Oklahoma City, 10 November 2009. http://www.journalrecord.com/article.cfm?recID=104225 Retrieved 30 November 2009 A second portrait of Walker by Alexander was the cover photograph of the October 2010 Writer's Digest, and was discussed by Walker on her personal blog."Alice Walker: The Official Website." Reclaiming the Crossroads: 10 November 2010. http://www.alicewalker.info/ Retrieved 2 January 2011. She was recognized by Lake Superior State University in her hometown of Sault Ste. Marie with the Kenneth J. Shouldice Achievement Award for "personal and professional successes."
Creative writing Alexander is also a poet, playwright and lyricist. With her husband, composer Edward Knight, she has created two full-length musicals: Strike A Match (1999) and Night of the Comets (2001), both premiered at the Bass School of Music at Oklahoma City University.McBride, Murdoch. "Night of the Comets Bows in September 2001 After 30-Week OCU Workshop." Playbill.com. 6 November 2000. Retrieved 30 November 2009 Cradle of Dreams, their work for chorus and orchestra, was commercially recorded by the Kyiv Philharmonic and the Kyiv Chamber Choir.Sigma Alpha Iota International Music Fraternity - Composers: Edward Knight. http://www.sigmaalphaiota.org/home/ComposersBureau/KnightEdward/tabid/342/Default.aspx Retrieved 30 November 2009
Alexander and Knight’s song cycle, Tales Not Told, is based on her poems exploring the viewpoints of six American ancestors of the composer: Helen Harvey Tiffany Paddock, Patience Brewster, Keziah Keyes Ransom, Sarah Town Bridges Cloyce, Bessie Barton Paddock, and Mary Dyer. The work has been performed in New York, Oklahoma and California, including by the San Francisco Cabaret Opera, and published by Subito Music.San Francisco Cabaret Opera. http://www.goathall.org/Past-Productions/index.html Retrieved 30 November 2009 The work was the subject of a doctoral dissertation by Catherine McDaniel at the University of Oklahoma.McDaniel, Catherine. "'I Offer a Dance of Joy...': The Intersection of Genealogy and Genre in Edward Knight's Tales Not Told." D. M. A. dissertation, University of Oklahoma, 2009. A national reviewer called the poems "beautiful" and the cycle "intriguing, heartfelt, and beautifully crafted."Carmen, Judith. "Music Review: Tales Not Told." Journal of Singing: The Official Journal of the National Association of Teachers of Singing, Inc. September/October 2009 Volume 66, No. 1. pp 111-114.
Alexander and Knight created the oratorio "Of Perpetual Solace," commissioned in honor of the 25th anniversary of the Murrah Building bombing and presented in a hybrid taped-and-live performance by Canterbury Voices and the Oklahoma City Philharmonic at Civic Center Music Hall. Her text "wove together her original writings with excerpts from poets including Sara Teasdale, Edgar Allen Poe and Robert Frost; biblical passages from the Book of Job and Psalm 23; speeches by Martin Luther King, who preached at nearby Calvary Baptist Church; pieces of President Bill Clinton’s eulogy delivered at the bombing site in the hours after the 1995 attack; and the gravestone epitaph of Comanche leader Quanah Parker." McDonnell, Brandy. "Canterbury Voices reimagines world-premiere concert remembering OKC bombing" The Oklahoman. May 13, 2021. https://www.oklahoman.com/story/entertainment/2021/05/13/canterbury-voices-concert-delayed-by-covid-19-remembers-okc-bombing/4920326001/