Inuit Art Quarterly - Unikkat/Unikkaaqtuat: Bridging Time

IN THIS ISSUE:

Deantha Edmunds Arctic Arias — Moving Forward/ Looking Back Art in Transit — Chantal Jung Astral Futures

Unikkaat/Unikkaaqtuat Bridging Time

CONTENTS

35.2

Inuit Art Quarterly Unikkaat/Unikkaaqtuat

Front

Features

Back ARTIST PROJECT

05 From the Editor

62 Flower Blossoms

by Chantal Jung

06 Meet the Contributors

Three generations of Inuit women connected together through time, space and thread.

08 Impact Update 5 WORKS

16

Fresh Takes

18

Shuvinai Ashoona

by Heather Von Steinhagen

TRIBUTE

66 Mosha Michael

by Mark David Turner

CHOICE

70 News LAST LOOK

CHOICE

72 Henry Napartuk

20 Myra Kukiiyaut

by Tarralik Duffy ARTISTS’ CORNER

24 An exciting funding announcement PROFILE

26 Nurrahaq

by Kaitlyn Purcell

FEATURE

32 In the Moment: The Transformation of Transportation in Inuit Art

by Gayle Uyagaqi Kabloona

From dog teams to gas engines, this feature explores depictions of Inuit transportation and innovation in art.

FEATURE

44

temporal loop

by Sue Carter

Deantha Edmunds brings centuries-old operatic traditions into modern times with a new take on Handel’s Messiah.

LEGACY

54 Back in Them Days

by Aimee Chaulk

Celebrating the dedicated work of Happy Valley-Goose Bay’s historical magazine.

ON THE COVER

Nick Sikkuark — Untitled (Spirits) 2005 Pencil crayon 41.9 × 27.9 cm COURTESY MARION SCOTT GALLERY © THE ARTIST

LEFT

Nurrahaq — I may be a male but I’m not a male 2021 Oil painting 60.9 × 45.7 cm © THE ARTIST

ABOVE

Ningiukulu Teevee — The Babysitter 2020 Pastel 30 × 22.7 cm REPRODUCED WITH PERMISSION DORSET FINE ARTS COURTESY MADRONA GALLERY © THE ARTIST

Unikkaat/Unikkaaqtuat

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Front

MASTHEAD PUBLISHER

EDITORIAL

BOARD OF DIRECTORS

The Inuit Art Quarterly is published by the Inuit Art Foundation.

Executive Director and Publisher Alysa Procida

President Heather Igloliorte Montreal, QC

Editorial Director Britt Gallpen

Vice-President Reneltta Arluk Banff, AB

Established in 1987, the Inuit Art Foundation is a not-for-profit charitable organization that provides support to Canada’s Inuit arts communities and is the sole national body mandated to promote Inuit artists and art within Canada and internationally.

This magazine relies on donations made to the Inuit Art Foundation, a registered charitable organization in Canada (BN #121033724RR0001) and the United States (#980140282).

The Inuit Art Foundation gratefully acknowledges the support of the Government of Canada through contributions from the Reconciliation Secretariat at Crown-Indigenous Relations and Northern Affairs Canada and the Department of Canadian Heritage, as well as the Ontario Arts Council, Canada Council for the Arts and Ontario Creates.

Subscriptions subscribe@inuitartfoundation.org Canada: $33/yr. Excludes GST/HST. US: $44/yr. Elsewhere: $48/yr.

GST/HST #121033724RT0001.

The Inuit Art Quarterly is a member of Magazines Canada.

Publication date of this issue: June 15, 2022 ISSN 0831-6708 Publication Mail Agreement #40050252 Postmaster send address changes to Inuit Art Foundation.

Return undeliverable Canadian addresses to: Inuit Art Foundation 1655 Dupont Street Toronto, ON, M6P 3T1 (647) 498-7717 inuitartfoundation.org ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. REPRODUCTION WITHOUT WRITTEN PERMISSION OF THE PUBLISHER IS STRICTLY FORBIDDEN. THE INUIT ART QUARTERLY IS NOT RESPONSIBLE FOR UNSOLICITED MATERIAL. THE VIEWS EXPRESSED IN THE INUIT ART QUARTERLY ARE NOT NECESSARILY THOSE OF THE INUIT ART FOUNDATION. PRINTED IN CANADA. DISTRIBUTED BY MAGAZINES CANADA.

Deputy Editor Sue Carter Associate Editor Napatsi Folger Associate Editor Lisa Frenette Associate Editor Jessica MacDonald Assistant Editor Nadine Ryan Contributing Editor Leanne Inuarak-Dall Contributing Editor Bronson Jacque Copy Editor Tiffany Larter Fact Checker Amy Prouty Advertising Manager Nicholas Wattson

Secretary-Treasurer Julie Grenier Kuujjuaq, Nunavik, QC

OPPOSITE

David Ruben Piqtoukun — Shaman’s Trip to the Moon 1996 Brazilian soapstone, Itallian alabaster and African wonderstone 35 × 81 × 46 cm COURTESY ART GALLERY OF ONTARIO © THE ARTIST

Jamie Cameron Toronto, ON Linda Grussani Ottawa, ON Goretti Kakuktinniq Kangiqliniq, NU Claudette Knight Toronto, ON Michael Massie Kippens, NL Ryan Rice Toronto, ON Director in Training Isabelle Uyaralaaq Avingaq Choquette Montreal, QC

Art Director (Interim) Maegan Fidelino Colour Gas Company Printing Interprovincial Group —

FOUNDATION Strategic Initiatives Director Heather Campbell

Inuvialuit Settlement Region Community Liaison Darcie Bernhardt

Igloo Tag Coordinator Blandina Attaarjuaq Makkik

Nunatsiavut Community Liaison Jessica Winters

Operations Manager Brittany Holliss

Nunavik Community Liaison Nancy Saunders

Executive Assistant Alyson Hardwick

Nunavut Community Liaison Jesse Tungilik

Administrative Assistant Kali Galbraith

Southern Canada Community Liaison Alberta Rose Williams

Archives Coordinator Madeleine Bognar

FROM TIME TO TIME WE MAKE OUR SUBSCRIBERS’ NAMES AVAILABLE TO COMPANIES WHOSE PRODUCTS OR SERVICES WE FEEL MAY BE OF INTEREST TO YOU. TO BE EXCLUDED FROM THESE MAILINGS, PLEASE SEND YOUR REQUEST, ALONG WITH A COPY OF YOUR SUBSCRIPTION MAILING LABEL, TO THE ADDRESS ABOVE.

Inuit Art Quarterly

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Summer 2022

FROM THE EDITOR

Despite publishing four issues a year, the production cycle for a single issue of the Inuit Art Quarterly takes approximately nine months from concept to print. This is often just enough time for the scope and content to radically evolve and shift as we work in tandem with authors and artists to bring you a magazine filled with colour, movement and one-ofa-kind stories. Such was the case with this Summer 2022 issue. What originally began as an issue on transformation, itself morphed into something altogether new—perhaps best captured in this issue’s dual themes of Unikkaat/Unikkaaqtuat. Unikkaaqtuat, meaning “stories referring to a distant past,” and Unikkaat, meaning “stories referring to a recent past,” were proposed by Associate Editor Napatsi Folger when our search for an English equivalent turned up lacking.

Doris Saunders, CM. Established in the early 1970s, for decades the black-and-white pages of Them Days have been filled with portraits and stories of Nunatsiavummiut. And finally, this issue features a newly commissioned artist project by Chantal Jung that brings together three generations of Inuit women, charting a path from past to future, together.

On behalf of IAF staff, I’m excited to welcome Inuit arts supporter Claudette Knight and collections manager Isabelle Uyaralaaq Avingaq Choquette, Director-in-Training, to the IAF Board of Directors. We look forward to working with you to support and celebrate Inuit art and artists. And finally, I am thrilled to share that the IAF is launching a new national Inuit-specific funding pilot initiative in partnership with the Canada Council for the Arts. To learn more about this groundbreaking program turn to page 24 in this issue.

I hope you enjoy the journey contained within these pages; we look forward to seeing you on the other side!

This issue brings together artists whose work and words have the potential to transport us to other realms, be they rooted deeply in historical eras, recent memories or in cosmic futurities.

Our Features open with Gayle Uyagaqi Kabloona’s piece about the transformation of transportation—qamutiit, kayait, Ski-Doos and motor boats—in Inuit art and the potential of such works to evoke not only movement through space but also through time.

For the author, works by Victoria Mamnguqsualuk (1930–2016), Pudlo Pudlat (1916–92), Tim Pitsiulak (1967–2016) and others are deeply evocative, conjuring tangible experiences, sights and sounds. The power of art to function as time travel is similarly explored in temporal loop , which considers the unique position Nunatsiavummiuk Deantha Edmunds holds as an Inuk soprano and poet. Edmunds, who performs in numerous languages including Inuktut, collapses the worlds of Mozart, Handel and Haydn with those of coastal Northern Labrador through classical arrangements sung in Inuttitut. Three hundred and some kilometres south in Happy Valley-Goose Bay, NL, editor Aimee Chaulk has been preserving and sharing stories from the region, building on the early legacy of Them Days founding editor and artist Unikkaat/Unikkaaqtuat

Britt Gallpen Editorial Director 5

Front

MEET THE CONTRIBUTORS

A behind-the-scenes look at the issue AIMEE CHAULK BACK IN THEM DAYS PAGE 54

“I think of intricate colouring books as a more recent trend, but you might say Them Days is ahead of the crowd! In 1982, Them Days published a colouring book featuring sketches by artist Gerald Mitchell, originally of Makkovik, Nunatsiavut, NL. It was a staple of a Labrador childhood in the ’80s and ’90s. We reprinted it 30 years later, and this summer, we will be hosting a Gerald Mitchell retrospective exhibit and concert.”

Being out on the land has been close to my heart throughout my life.”

GAYLE UYAGAQI KABLOONA HEATHER VON STEINHAGEN

IN THE MOMENT: THE TRANSFORMATION OF TRANSPORTATION IN INUIT ART PAGE 32

CHOICE: SHUVINAI ASHOONA PAGE 18

“I had so much fun looking at historic and contemporary Inuit art portraying vehicles.

Being out on the land has been close to my heart throughout my life. I feel lucky that every time I research writing topics, I discover more artists whose work is incredible and poignant, giving me a visual history of our culture. I know I’m not the only one who has developed a love and appreciation for their modes of transport!”

“We are not separate from our environments, body, emotions and patterns. Ashoona’s Inner Worlds shows a monster, but when we take a closer look, we see that it’s an unrecognizable version of ourselves. Oftentimes we’re looking for something that’s right beside us. Artwork can be subtle and confusing and that’s what I loved most about exploring Ashoona’s Inner Worlds.”

Worlds.

This issue’s contributor illustrations are by Olivia Chislett Olivia (Akeeshoo) Chislett is a multimedia artist from Iqaluit, NU, who primarily works in graphic art and throat singing.

Chislett was one of the winners of the 2021 National Fur Design Competition and also in 2021 published a comic as part of Hecate Press’s The Northern Gaze Comics Anthology. Her solo comic book will be released with the same publisher in June 2022. In addition to her artistic practice, Chislett also teaches throat singing at the local high school.

Visit her IAQ profile at inuitartfoundation.org/olivia-chislett

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Summer 2022

COVER SPOTLIGHT

Meeting Nurrahaq reminded me how important it is to celebrate our ancestral stories and queer identities, and to fiercely protect what brings us joy.”

KAITLYN PURCELL PROFILE: NURRAHAQ PAGE 26

Nick Sikkuark COVER SPOTLIGHT

TARRALIK DUFFY CHOICE: MYRA KUKIIYAUT PAGE 20

“Writing about Evil Spirits as a superstitious Inuk was akin to walking under a hundred ladders and breaking ten mirrors but the helping spirits always win in the end.”

Nick Sikkuark — Untitled (Spirits) 2005 Pencil crayon 41.9 × 27.9 cm

Check out this issue’s artists at inuitartfoundation.org/summer2022 Unikkaat/Unikkaaqtuat

Nick Sikkuark (1943–2013), who was based for much of his career in Kugaaruk, NU, was best known for his transformative sculptures depicting metamorphosis and the blending of the human and spirit worlds.

He began carving in the 1970s, combining varying natural materials such as bone, sinew and muskox hair, to create forms that feel real and familiar and yet otherworldly. Sikkuark would pull ideas from stories, saying he strived to convey through his creations “how Inuit life was a long time ago.” 1 Much like his sculptures, Sikkuark’s artistic practice underwent a transformation itself as he shifted to drawing on paper in 2003. Although this exploration in drawing occurred later in his artistic career, Sikkuark was able to create a significant amount of work in this medium. Through his drawings, he continued to create fantastical imagery that evokes a sense of push and pull between the past and possible futures. His drawing Untitled (Spirits) (2005), with its squiggling and amorphous fi gures, coalesce to not only claim space on this issue’s cover but within our imaginations as well.

NOTES 1

Marybelle Mitchell, “Seven Artists in Ottawa,” Inuit Art Quarterly, Summer 1991: 16.

COURTESY MARION SCOTT GALLERY © THE ARTIST

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Front

THANK YOU

Donors make all the difference IAF Tunisijut Circle

$100,000+ RBC Foundation

With annual gifts of $1,000 or more, this incredibly dedicated group provides critical support to connect artists with opportunities and make an extraordinary impact.

$25,000–$49,999 Judith DesBrisay Power Corporation of Canada Willmott Bruce Hunter Foundation

IAF Taqqitamaat Tunisijut Circle The Taqqitamaat Tunisijut Circle is a special group of donors who give monthly to sustain the IAF and create opportunities for artists.

Inuit Art Quarterly

$5,000–$9,999 Rene Balcer and Carolyn Hsu-Balcer Christopher Bredt and Jamie Cameron Susan M. Carter Andrew Chodos and two anonymous donors

$10,000–$24,999 Bruce Bailey, in honour of Pat Feheley Colourgenics Goring Family Foundation Erik Haites

$2,500–$4,999 Patricia and Donald Dodds Eleanor Erikson Pat Feheley Janice Gonsalves Inuit Art Society Hesty Leibtag David and Liz Macdonald Joram Piatigorsky Paul Pizzolante

Amy Adams Lea Algar-Moscoe Mary Anglim Andrea Arnold Stephen Baker Vincent and Barbara Barresi Molly Blyth Robbin Bond Christopher Bredt and Jamie Cameron Tobi Bruce Catherine Campbell Sue Carter Claudia Christian Catherine Dean

Rosemary Delli Zuani Celia Denov Emmanuelle A. Desrochers Hal Dietz Patricia and Donald Dodds Kate Doorly Sophie Dorais Mathieu Doucette Melanie Egan Leslie E. Eisenberg Lynn Feasey Kashtin Fitzsimons Maxime Fortin Lisa Frenette Britt Gallpen and Travis Vakenti

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Monthly supporter Multi-year pledge supporter Endowment supporter Kenojuak Ashevak Memorial Award supporter Inuit Art Quarterly supporter IAQ Profiles supporter Artist Services supporter

John and Joyce Price The Herb and Cece Schreiber Foundation Hunter and Valerie Thompson $1,000–$2,499 Kristiina Alariaq, Huit Huit Tours Ltd. capedorset-inuitart.com Judy Banning Vincent and Barbara Barresi Jordy Bell and Stephen Jacoby Katharine Bocking The Honourable Patricia Bovey Shary Boyle Elise Brais Ben Caesar Gabrielle Campbell

Kik and Si Gilman Anik Glaude Dr. Andrew Gotowiec Linda Grussani Barbara Hale Andrea Hamilton Sari Hannila, in honour of the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation, Inuit survivors, and the artists who tell Inuit stories ᓇᑯᕐᒦᒃ Celia Harte Lisa R. Hartman Shawn Hassell Dianne Hayman

Summer 2022

THANK YOU

The Ikajuqtiit Circle changes lives all year long.

Members of the Ikajuqtiit Circle—those who help—are caring donors who protect and nurture the Inuit art community.

As Ikajuqtiit Circle members, you provide opportunities for artists to explore their practices, learn new skills and grow. You raise global awareness and appreciation of Inuit art.

The generous Ikajuqtiit Circle members listed on these pages make all this and more possible. Your support is especially critical now in these uncertain times. Thank you!

Gifts listed here were made between March 1, 2021 and March 31, 2022.

New Hampshire Charitable Foundation’s Geoffrey E. Clark and Martha Fuller Clark Fund Cosentino Emily Deming Paul Desmarais III and Mary Dailey Desmarais Hal Dietz Marian Dodds, in honour of Dedie Dodds Arthur Drache CM QC and Judy Young Drache DUCA, in honour of Frits Albert Begemann’s legacy, in tribute to his passion for Inuit art Jon and Valerie Eliassen Fath Group/O’Hanlon Paving Ltd. Dave Forrest

Peter Gillespie, in memory of Lyn Solomon-Gillespie, on behalf of The Solomon and Gillespie Fund Janice Gonsalves MacDonald Griffin Charitable Foundation Linda Grussani Susan Hawkins Carol Heppenstall Jackman Foundation Rawlson King Charles Kingsley Elske and Jim Kofman Katarina Kupca The William and Shirley Lakey Family Fund at Edmonton Community Foundation Barbara Legowski

Ann and Michael Lesk Kathleen Lippa Maija M. Lutz and Peter A. Tassia Christie MacInnes Susan Marrier John McCaig Alison and Bruce McDonald Shannon Norberg and Jarvis Hall Susan Ollila Danielle Ouimet and Paul Harper Ann Posen, in honour of David Braidberg Andrew and Valerie Pringle Shirley Richardson Sanford Riley David Runkle

Frances E. Scheidel Melanie and Michael Southern David Sproule, in memory of Jean Katherine Sproule and Robin Mercer-Sproule Marie-Josée Therrien Barbara Turner Gail Vanstone Jaan Whitehead Cathy and David Wilkes Susan Wortzman and Glenn Smith Norman Zepp and Judith Varga and one anonymous donor

Bryan Hellwig Brittany Holliss Amy Jenkins Rozanne Enerson Junker M.A. Konantz Katarina Kupca Nancy and Terry Lee Rebecca Lee Mike and Cindy MacMillan Samia Madwar, in honour of Hazar Shawaf Michael Martens, in memory of Miriam Bordofsky Roxanne McCaig Kathleen and Brian Metcalf

Elizabeth Mitchell and Stephen Lloyd Stephen Morris, in memory of Aqjangayuk Shaa Rachel O’Neill Dawn Owen Clifford Papke Aarohi Patel Kara Pearce Ann Posen, in honour of David Braidberg David Pride Alysa Procida and Kevin Stewart David and Robin Procida Abdul Rahim Yeung

Eva Riis-Culver Margerit Roger Bruno Savoie Leslie Saxon West Joanne Schmidt, in loving memory of Gail Schmidt Yu Song Michael and Melanie Southern Joyce and Fred Sparling C. Spencer David Sproule, in memory of Jean Katherine Sproule Suncor Energy Jacek Szulc Jay and Deborah Thomson

Emilie Tremblay Gail Vanstone Nicholas Wattson Gord and Laurie Webster Claude M. Weil, in honour of Jim Shirley Elka Weinstein Peggy Weller Kim Wiebe and Aubrey Margolis Jayne Wilkinson Susan Wortzman and Glenn Smith and seven anonymous donors

TO LEARN MORE ABOUT HOW TO SUPPORT ARTISTS, PLEASE CONTACT US AT 647-498-7717 OR VISIT US ONLINE AT INUITARTFOUNDATION.ORG. AS A REGISTERED CHARITY IN CANADA (#121033724RR001) AND THE UNITED STATES (#980140282), THE IAF WELCOMES DONATIONS, SPONSORSHIPS, LEGACY GIFTS AND IN-KIND CONTRIBUTIONS.

Unikkaat/Unikkaaqtuat

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Front

THANK YOU

COURTESY THE ARTIST

Illannarijaujut Tunngavinngmit $500–$999 Catherine Campbell Clive and Mary Clark Dr. Yvonne C. Condell David Deisley Harald Finkler and Nadine Nickner Yvonne and David Fleck Maxime Fortin Alain Fournier Carol Gray Barbara Hale Cary Hart Dianne Hayman Molly K. Heines and Thomas J. Moloney Bryan Hellwig Roger and Margaret Horton

Erica Jacque, a textile artist from Postville, Nunatsiavut, NL, recreates iconic art in her embroidery. In March 2021, she was introduced to readers through the IAQ Artist Spotlight online newsletter and is featured in this issue’s 5 Works. After appearing in the IAQ, Jacque has continued to grow in her artistic practice, including being invited to participate in Reflections of Ourselves at the Orillia Museum of Art & History in Ontario. For the exhibition, Jacque has embroidered a design that speaks to the importance of observation, both physically and non-physically, in Inuit culture.

Lee and Sharon Oberlander Dawn Owen Martin Pâquet Alysa Procida and Kevin Stewart Leslie Reid Wendy Rittenhouse Nicholas A. Robinson Margerit Roger Susan Rowley Paula Santrach Celine Saucier Amalia Steinberg, in honour of Jeri Ah-Be-Hill Tom Suber and Cary Griffin Suncor Energy George Szabo Jay and Deborah Thomson Ann and Wayne Tompkins Carol Thrun Dr. Joel Umlas Terry Vatrt

Dale Horwitz Chuck Hudson Louis Jungheim, in memory of Floyd Kuptana Dwaine and Leslie King Lori Labatt Simon Lappi Val K. Lem Marie A. Loyer Michael Martens, in memory of Miriam Bordofsky Keith Martin and Jackie Hatherly-Martin Patricia McKeown Mireille Menard Kathleen and Brian Metcalfe James Miller Elizabeth Mitchell and Stephen Lloyd Nancy Moore Allan Newell Suzanne O’Hara

Peggy Weller The Wente Family Kim Wiebe and Aubrey Margolis Craig Wilbanks and Monty Kehl Zynga and nine anonymous donors [3 , 3 , 3 , 1 ] $250–$499 Amy Adams Lea Algar-Moscoe Michelle Allen Beatriz Alvarez Mary Anglim Anne-Claude Bacon Birgit Både Stephen Baker Brian and Carol Belchamber Jurg and Christel Bieri

LEFT

Erica Jacque’s Embroidered Owl Earrings (2020) are an homage to Owl Becoming Ravens (c. 1990–2000) by beloved artist Kenojuak Ashevak, CC, ONu, RCA. Reimagined as wearable art, these embroidered earrings are representative of much of the artist’s intimate and highly detailed work. © THE ARTIST

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Summer 2022

THANK YOU

Since I was included in the Artist Spotlight newsletter, I’ve become more confident in my artistic abilities and how I represent myself in the world of Inuit art. I now know that I am capable of a future that relies on my artistic insights and imagination. I can do things based on my own happiness and satisfaction since there are people who appreciate what I do and are excited to see the things I create. I am so thankful for the Inuit Art Foundation.”

ERICA JACQUE

Woody Brown and Christa Ouimet Margaret Bursaw, in memory of John Maounis John and Elaine Butcher Denise Cargill Sue Carter Raymond and Charlene Thacker Currie Celia Denov Nadine Di Monte and Michael Boland Fei Disbrow DK John Domsy Kate Doorly Sophie Dorais Nathalie Ducamp Andy Fallas Lisa Frenette Galerie D’art Vincent Sally and Einar Gall

Melinda Josie Rozanne Junker Carola Kaegi Sonya Kelliher-Combs Nancy Keppelman and Michael Smerza Dr. P. Koppinen Mary Kostman Dr. Virginia Lavin Carolyn Lawson Nancy and Terry Lee Haidee Smith Lefebvre Barbara Legowski and Lewis Auerbach Dr. Ellen Lehman and Charles Kennel Kenneth R. Lister Simone Ludlow, on behalf of Max and Karl Crain Roxanne McCaig Tess and Duncan McLean, in memory of Terry Ryan

Britt Gallpen and Travis Vakenti Peter and Deirdre Gardner Mary and Ian Glen Peter Gold and Athalie Joy Dr. Andrew Gotowiec Dave Haber and Dominique Ritter Andrea Hamilton Sari Hannila, in honour of the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation, Inuit survivors, and the artists who tell Inuit stories. ᓇᑯᕐᒦᒃ Celia Harte Ainslie Harvey Shawn Hassell Anne Hearn Laurie Herd Debby and Brian Hirsch Joanne Hommik Dr. Heather Igloliorte and Matthew Brulotte

Robert Michaud Charles Moss/Dee Fenner Linda Netten Michael and Brenda Noone Donna and Hal Olsen Clifford Papke Alex Pappas and Ann Maners Bonnie E. Park Maria Parsons Aarohi Patel Kara Pearce Katherine Quatermass, in honour of Love and Loss: Tales from Imagined Lands Crowdfunder Abdul Rahim Yeung Jim and Shelley Renner Eva Riis-Culver Bruce Roberts Leslie Roden-Foreman and Michael Foreman

RIGHT

This embroidered leaf by Erica Jacque depicts everyday scenes from the North, each representing a moment of learning through watching. Aptly titled Observation (2022), the piece will be a part of the exhibition Reflections of Ourselves. © THE ARTIST

Unikkaat/Unikkaaqtuat

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Front

THANK YOU

COURTESY JANICE GREY

Kerstin Roger, in honour of Margerit Roger Greg Rogers Louise Rolingher Charlie Rubin Kassie Ruth Leslie Saxon West Joanne Schmidt, in loving memory of Gail Schmidt Richard Sourkes Pat Sparrer Charmaine Spencer Sara Stasiuk Steinbrueck Native Gallery Colleen Suche Wayne and Ann Tompkins Emilie Tremblay Dr. Anne Vagi Peg and Peter Van Brunt Nicholas Wattson

Janice Grey, born in Kuujjuaq, Nunavik, QC, and raised in Aupaluk, Nunavik, QC, has a passion for preserving Inuit culture and language for Nunavik’s youth. She has been involved with community co-operatives for over a decade and is active in politics at both regional and local levels. Through her work with the IAQ, Grey has used her writing to speak to the impact of Inuit art in Nunavik, such as her 2019 Community Spotlight on the first Inukjuak print collection and more recently an online piece about Leah Qumaaluk’s Play (1966).

Marjorie Blankstein Molly Blyth Robbin Bond Anne Borchardt, in memory of Claus Borchardt Stephen and Hazel Borys Annette M. Boucher Karen Bradfield Jennifer Brown Kaaren and Julian Brown Ruth Brown Dorothy Caldwell and William Woods Mary F. Campbell John Carr Paul E. Cawein Mark Cheetham David S. Cherepacha Cobalt Art Gallery Madeleine Colaço Carol A. Cole

Gail Wylie and Dave Wright and four anonymous donors [2 , 1 ] $100–$249 Carole Ahmad and family Ella Nathanael and Chris Alkiewicz, in memory of Janet Wallace Ley Jane and Wallace Altes Reneltta Arluk, in honour of Carver Kalluk Kirby Caroline Arpin Anne-Claude Bacon Catherine Badke Donald Badke, in memory of Anne Badke H. Mary Balint Deborah Bates Heather M. Beecroft Catherine Birt

Geraldine and Jeremy Cole Jill Coles Peter Coolican Charles and Arline Crockford Ruby Cruz Fred and Mary Cutler George Dark Gordon Davidson Catherine Dean Anne-Marie Delaunay-Danizio Rosemary Delli Zuani Wilfrid Denis Department of Unusual Certainties Emmanuelle A. Desrochers Margaret Dimond Chris Dos Santos Mathieu Doucette François Dumaine Melanie Egan

LEFT

In her Community Spotlight for the Fall 2019 issue of the IAQ, Janice Grey shared the significance of early Inukjuak prints, such as Two Men Picking Seagull Eggs (1975) by Lucassie Echalook, and how they are “an important reminder that our history is our own to document.” © THE ARTIST

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Summer 2022

THANK YOU

Writing for the IAQ has given me the confidence and experience to pursue a career in writing. I always loved to write, but I never really sought it out. When the IAQ reached out to me to write a Community Spotlight on Inukjuak, it was my first really big piece. Nunavik artists in the ’50s, ’60s and ’70s paved the way for us to take our future into our own hands and by our own means. It was artists who inspired our political awakening. We wouldn’t be where we are without the artists and it’s an honour for me to write about them and share their work in the IAQ.” JANICE GREY

Leslie E. Eisenberg Stephanie Ellise, Friend of Inuit artists Keith R. Evans Lynn Feasey Maegan Fidelino Robin Field Gustel Fischer Kashtin Fitzsimons Chun Fong Joana Fraga Ed Friedman Paula Frisch JoAnne and Richard Fuerst Susan Gallpen and David Stephenson Glenn Gear Kik and Si Gilman Anik Glaude Eddie Goldstein

Rick Hiebert, in honour of Renzo Fernandez’s 40th Birthday!

Charles Hilton, Sculptor Brittany Holliss Albert Holthuis David Homan Frederick Hooper Warren Howard Allan Hughes Mike Hurry Jacqueline Hynes, Ph.D. Noorlizan Ibrahim Linda and James Igloliorte Jeannette Jackson-Thompson, in memory of Richard C. Thompson Faye Jacobs Drs. Laurence and Katherine Jacobs Amy Jenkins

Deborah D. Gordon Karen and George Gorsline Patricia Grattan Kristine Greenaway Jill Greenberg Jill Grief Lizzie Haines Patt Hall John Hanjian Tekla Harms Lisa R. Hartman Clive Harvey Ian Harvey Tatiana Harvey Sara Hassan, in memory of Sharif Maher Hassan Janet Heagle, in memory of Fritz Begeman K. E. Heller-McRoberts Heliographics

Stephanie K. Kevin and Holly Kaminska, in memory of Claus Borchardt John and Johanna Kassenaar Jennipher and Jamie Kean, on behalf of Elizabeth O’Grady Anne Kearns Heather Keith Cathy Kirkpatrick Bryan Klein A B Kliefoth, MD Claudette Knight Jo-Ann Kolmes M.A. Konantz Jerry and Gail Korpan Julie L’Heureux Larry and Joyce Lacroix Dr. Virginia Lavin Huguette Le Gall Rebecca Lee

RIGHT

For her IAQ Online article, Janice Grey reflected on the power of works like Leah Qumaaluk’s Play (1966) and the influence of Nunavik printmakers on the preservation of stories and Inuit culture. Her article reached online readers around the world, including Belgium and Japan. © THE ARTIST

Unikkaat/Unikkaaqtuat

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Front

THANK YOU

COURTESY LESLIE SAXON WEST

Wynne and William Lee Gordon Leggett Jamie Lewis Daryl Logan Denis Longchamps Bob Ludwig and Susan Baum Tanya Lukin-Linklater Peter Lyman Mike and Cindy MacMillan Catherine Madsen Samia Madwar, in honour of Hazar Shawaf Peter Malkin Dr. Neil and Elaine Margolis Jim and Mary Alice Mayerle Michelle McGeough Elizabeth McKeown G. Lester and Phyllis McKinnon Brian McLeod Heather McNab Joanna Miazga Yves Morneau Stephen Morris, in memory of Aqjangayuk Shaa Cathy Moser and Jeff Itzkow David Muir Sophia Muylwyk My Art Syndicate Julie Nagam, in honour of Nahanni and Morea Suzanne F. Nash

Leslie Saxon West is a dedicated art educator and Professor Emeritus of Native North American Art at Mendocino College. She is a passionate advocate for Inuit art, particularly art that pushes against the boundaries of what is expected from Inuit artists. In 2016 Saxon West curated STARK ABUNDANCE: Through the Eyes of Arctic First Peoples at the Mendocino College Art Gallery in Northern California, educating students and the community about northern cultures and art. She has been a member of the IAF’s Taqqitamaat Tunisijut Circle since 2019 to help connect artists with opportunities.

Aliide Naylor, in memory of Lyyli Elliott Gary Nelson Lou Nelson Michael and Brenda Noone Rachel O’Neill Louisa O’Reilly Marina Oeler Douglas Palmerton Penny Pattinson Kate Permut Father Colin Peterson Don Pether Mimi Philippe Ed and Johannes Pien Richard and Annette Pivnick LuAnn and William Polk David Pride David and Robin Procida Robert Procida Pauline Provencher Mickey Ranalli Blaine Rapp, in memory of Helen Rapp Bayard D. Rea Dr. Timothy W. Reinig Marcia Rioux Anita Romaniuk Barry Rosenberg The Ryan Family Judith Rycus

Lynne B. Sagalyn J. Salkowitz, DMD Dr. Jinder Sall Wally and Lenore Sapach Bruno Savoie Iris Schweiger Jeffrey Seidman Mari Shantz Mark Shiner Janet and Benjamin Shute, Jr. Scenery Slater Yu Song Joyce and Fred Sparling Arlene Stecenko Clarence Stonefish Jacek Szulc Dr. Charles Haskell Tator Robert C. and Judith Toll Robert and Audrey Vandewater Louise and James Vesper Jon Vickery Voyages Carole Gobeil Travel Garnet Ward Brenda and Robert Watson John Weber, in memory of Mary MacDonald Gord and Laurie Webster Claude M. Weil, in honour of Jim Shirley Elka Weinstein Karen Westrell

Thank you to this special group of donors who have committed to creating impactful opportunities for artists and supporting Inuit art over the long term by pledging to give annually for years to come.

Inuit Art Quarterly

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Scott White Amanda Whitney Garland Austin Withers Daphne Wright Mark and Margie Zivin and sixteen anonymous donors [one in memory of Claus Borchardt, one in memory of Hans Blohm 3 ,2 ,5 ,1 ,4 ] Up to $99 Ariell Ahearn-Ligham Susan Anthony Andrea Arnold Beverly Biderman Kurt Biedermann Vicki Boutin Bill Bradley Laurie Anne Brewer Fiona Buchan-Corey David Burns Kevin Burns Jonathan Bursaw, in memory of John Maounis Jocelyn Bussieres Monica Bye Nilsen, love from Sápmi Ginger Carlson Jim and Cindy Carter Shelley Chochinov

Eleanor Erickson Goring Family Foundation HMH Capital Corporation/Hugh Hall Joram Piatigorsky Herb and Cece Schreiber Foundation Craig Wilbanks and Monty Kehl

Summer 2022

THANK YOU

Being an artist can be a difficult path to follow. This is why I’m a monthly donor to IAQ and why specifically, I want to support individual Inuit artists. I believe that it is my responsibility, as a patron of the arts, to encourage new ways of seeing, thinking and creating by younger visionaries. While I cherish the timeless older pieces and the artists who created them, I want to encourage younger artists to challenge my understanding of what Inuit art is and can be.”

LESLIE SAXON WEST

Claudia Christian J. De Vincenzo Lisa Deanne Smith Paulette Dennis Hilary Dickson Maegan Didden Tracey Doherty, in memory of William Robert Mesher Kristin Dowell Jane Ely Pat English Ian Ferrier Melanie Foubert Kathryn Fournier Pamela Fratti Paula Frisch Frank Gielen Claire Gold Pernille Goodbrand Dara Gordon, in honour of Morgan and Richard Zigler whose lives are forever bound together by their love for and connection to the arts, education and the Arctic Birgitte Granofsky Susan C. Griswold Delan Hamasoor Alissa Hamilton Kathryn Hanna Beatrice Hanson

Alyson Hardwick, in honour of Delphine Shiwak Anna Holmes Albert Holthuis Andrew Hubbertz Elizabeth Hutchinson Phillip Innes Erika Janik Celina Jeffery Heather Jessiman Anne-Remy Jones Jeannette Jonker Anne Louise Kelly Mary Lawrence Breinig Gretchen Lawrie Teresa Leon Dingwell Lexo Anastasia Lintner Marion Lord Suzie MacMillian, in honour of mom and dad Sophie Mailloux Wendy and Michael Main Geraldine and Peter Marshall Michael Massie Graham Mastersmith William Mather David and Maida Maxham Patrick McLean Golda and Martin Mendelsohn Mary Jane Mikkelsen

Robert Muller Heather Murdock Susan Newlove Paul Newman Lena Nicholls Marina Noack Rob Norquay Peter Noteboom Keitrah Oakley Carole Ouimet, in honour of Christa Ouimet Katie Pearl Clodine Portugais Steve Potocny and Anne Milochik Danielle Rand Isabelle Ranger Sharlene Rankin Mark Rieger Marilyn Robinson Enid Rokaw Robert Rosenbaum Richard and Yvonne Rothenberg Susan H. Rountree Carol-Ann Ryan Donna Saunders Janet Savard Kathryn Scott Patricia Scott Doug Selley

Uma Selvarajah Paul Shackel and Barbara Little Cindy Skrukwa Jan Carol Houston Smith Gregory Sonek Ann Sprayregen Horace Suffredini Take Two Software Sarah Taylor Karen Thorne-Stone Ian Trott Ukpik Inuit Art, on behalf of Alan Pinder Elizabeth Vadas Darlene Tymn Nancy Walkling, in memory of Frank Walkling Tiffany Wallace Jennifer White Mark and Margaret Whitley Michael Wiles Jayne Wilkinson Jennie Williams Fred Wurlitzer, M.D. Dallas Young and fifteen anonymous donors [1 , 2 , 5 , 1 ]

You can make the difference There are more than 13,000 Inuit artists working in Canada today. Many face barriers to making and showcasing their work, but all deserve the same opportunities other artists have for their voices to be heard and their work to be seen.

By giving to the IAF, you help artists working across Inuit Nunangat and beyond connect to opportunities, have platforms for their work to be seen and build their careers.

Celebrate the art you love and make a difference by donating today.

Unikkaat/Unikkaaqtuat

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Front

5 WORKS

Fresh Takes IAF staff explore past and present through reimagined works

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Michael Massie, CM, RCA

Filling in for Venus (2011)

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Saelym Degrandpre

Modern vs traditionalism (2021) Reminiscent of Michealangelo’s The Creation of Adam (c. 1508–12) part of the Sistine Chapel, this work by Saelym Degrandpre captures a sense of push and pull. Two hands reach out to one another on a background of gradient pinks and peach hues, one hand beckoning to the other as if to invite it closer. With kakiniit dancing over the fingers and wrists, the two seem alike yet there are subtle differences.

From left to right the designs and colours shift from light to dark, creating contrast.

Darker nails on the right stand out, and the eye is drawn to a kakivak, or fishing spear, tattooed on the wrist. The title suggests the negotiation of a divide, reaching for a balance between the modern world and traditional values.

She sails on seashells by the seashore!

In this ode to Sandro Botticelli’s The Birth of Venus (c. 1482–85), Kippens, NL, artist Michael Massie, CM, RCA, has Sedna holding court for her fellow sea goddess Venus, who is perhaps overseeing a marriage or aiding two star-crossed lovers in a secret rendezvous somewhere in Greece.

Swapping paint for stone and brass, Massie’s goddess floats horizontal with her seal flippers and tail in the shining brass shell, more at home in the sea perhaps than her two-legged Roman counterpart. Sculpted out of deep green serpentinite, Sedna’s flowing curls and naked body mimic Botticelli’s original while lending her own dark presence to the piece.

MADELEINE BOGNAR

Archives Coordinator

NAPATSI FOLGER

Associate Editor

ABOVE

Saelym Degrandpre — Modern vs traditionalism 2021 Digital illustration © THE ARTIST

Inuit Art Quarterly

ABOVE

OPPOSITE (ABOVE)

Michael Massie — Filling in for Venus 2011 Serpentinite, bone, ebony, mahogany and brass 9.5 × 20.3 × 13.9 cm

Tiffany Ayalik — Itqaqhaijuq / Tries to Remember 2021 Still from live performance 30 min.

© THE ARTIST

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COURTESY WESTERN FRONT © THE ARTIST

Summer 2022

5 WORKS

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Tiffany Ayalik

Itqaqhaijuq / Tries to Remember (2021) Last November on a typical rainy Vancouver night, I had the pleasure of being drawn in from the cold to an intimate and moving performance

by Tiffany Ayalik. The multidisciplinary artist from Yellowknife, NT, worked with a collection of Innuinait songs recorded on wax cylinder and documented in Western music notation by ethnomusicologists in the early twentieth century. During the live show, Ayalik remixed this material into a

new and complex composition reflective of the poetic songs sung by her ancestors.

Using multi-channel audio, Ayalik surrounded herself with these voices, layering in her own live vocals as she transcended time in a powerful sonic and visual experience.

LEANNE INUARAK-DALL

Contributing Editor

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Erica Jacque

Bird Human (2021)

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Jason Sikoak

Inuk Starry Night (2019)

A long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away, a lone Inuk stood looking up at the night sky. In Inuk Starry Night Jason Sikoak has taken care to replicate the composition of Vincent van Gogh’s original work, with identical swirls of clouds in the sky, shared Unikkaat/Unikkaaqtuat

placement for the scattered stars and moon, and even the figure in the foreground substituting for the cypress tree in The Starry Night (1889).

After trading multicoloured oils for silver ink, Sikoak could have traditionally outlined the different elements. Instead, he uses negative space to create definition between objects, retaining the swirling and curving shading motions that characterized van Gogh’s original brushwork. Most densely packed are the contours of the moon, which literally glows, bathing the scene in silvery light.

JESSICA MACDONALD

Associate Editor 17

Fancy a tea? Born about 75 years after Kenojuak Ashevak, CC, ONu, RCA (1927–2013), Erica Jacque created these statement earrings inspired by Ashevak’s 1960 stonecut print Bird Humans. Passing a teapot, these bird humans look domesticated and land locked, as well as cozy, in their parkas. Jacque has delicately recreated these iconic creatures into wearable art, highlighting the bold shapes with a soft baby blue and bright yellow beads. In honouring Ashevak’s affinity for birds and fluid shapes, Jacque has transformed the popular print into an iconic three-dimensional artwork of her own right.

ALYSON HARDWICK

Executive Assistant

LEFT

Jason Sikoak — Inuk Starry Night 2019 Silver ink on black paper 66 × 101.6 cm © THE ARTIST

ABOVE

Erica Jacque — Bird Human 2021 Embroidery thread on white fabric, stiff felt, plastic and beading 8.9 × 3.8 cm © THE ARTIST

Front

CHOICE

Shuvinai Ashoona Inner Worlds

by Heather Von Steinhagen

Inuit Art Quarterly

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Summer 2022

CHOICE

In this roller coaster of conceptual play, Ashoona presents familiar worlds within a being of our own creation, to hold the inner chapters of the networks we compartmentalize. The entanglements mimic the complications of life, culture and identity.

The rhythmic movement of Inner Worlds (2014) by Shuvinai Ashoona, RCA, creates a long maze of scales that dances viewers’ eyes along a surreal northern landscape. A closer exploration of the work’s visual clues invites us into a world of inner consciousness.

Ashoona’s use of spiritual iconography and her play with visual perspectives come together in a work that captures internal worlds and entangled views, allowing for a moment of self-reflection and connection to the body.

In the top-left corner of the lithograph sits a rosy hooded figure amongst the repeating pattern of tundra rocks, apparently unaware of the windy, snake-like creature lurking just behind them. We’re left wondering if the face of the serpent belongs to the faceless person on the rock because of their proximity to each other. This mysterious individual ignores us, while the serpent meets our gaze.

The icon of the snake appears in stories throughout human history, as a symbol to represent everything from the disruption of human morality to healing and revitalization. For example, the snake often represents an oil pipeline in land and water defender protests, while the shedding of a snake’s skin is a reminder of the process of renewal. In Inner Worlds, the snake’s tail becomes a labyrinth—impossible to track—as it changes from tangerine to dark orange, fading into the maroon landscape.

The bold vermillion face on the serpent is stoic, giving us a sense that they are calm and in control, while the tentacles in the background create a turbulent scene. The moving scaly creature with a human head wears stars and orbs containing imagined planets and snowing clouds along its body.

The person in the corner gives us a sense that they are searching for something. The worlds, orbs and stars could be imagined as psychological compartments of the internal worlds we hold inside of us. A narrative is created when we see that the person is looking for something and the creature that has their face is housing their inner worlds (planets), emotions (weather) and gifts (stars).

We are invited to connect with the elements we recognize to ground ourselves within the scene.

The composition of Inner Worlds influences the eye to follow the messages in whatever order they are revealed. In this roller coaster of conceptual play, Ashoona presents familiar worlds within a being of our own creation, to hold the inner chapters of the psychological, spiritual and physical networks we compartmentalize. The entangled connections mimic the complications of life, culture and identity.

Aligned with Ashoona’s style of surreal and prophetic playfulness, Inner Worlds represents a cerebral landscape. While some elements remain abstract and undefined, Ashoona provides a gift to the viewer to contemplate the meanings they bring to the surface.

— Heather Von Steinhagen is an artist of sorts, born and raised in Whitehorse, YT, and is a member of Cowessess First Nation and second-generation German/Canadian.

In her artwork, Steinhagen explores nature, spirituality and extraterrestrial phenomenon. Steinhagen is the former Executive Director for the Yukon Art Society and currently works for the Canadian Crafts Federation.

OPPOSITE

Shuvinai Ashoona — Inner Worlds 2014 Printmaker Niveaksie Quvinaqtuliaq Lithograph 76.2 × 57.2 cm REPRODUCED WITH PERMISSION DORSET FINE ARTS © THE ARTIST

Unikkaat/Unikkaaqtuat

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Front

CHOICE

Myra Kukiiyaut Evil Spirits

by Tarralik Duffy

Inuit Art Quarterly

20

Summer 2022

CHOICE

busy at work. There were often stories about so-and-so, who was still an angakkuq and could turn into a caribou or a rabbit.

The scariest stories were always shared while out camping, greatly amplified by the glorious and at times terrifying vastness of the landscape around us. Many of these mysterious beings could only be observed by the eyes of an angakkuq, who had the power to journey to other realms in trances and dreams. For the rest of us they only exist in uneasy whispers, but sometimes chance encounters with regular people happen. It was always that chance that kept us cautious, lest we tempt the spirits, inviting them into our lives with foolish acts or careless speaking.

Although many of our stories portray a terrifying and gloomy world filled with non-human life forms, some of these forms are helpful spirits, and others are not much different from Inuit except they cannot be seen. As I look closer at the woman’s own monstrously clawed hands, I wonder: is she in charge of them because she is in fact an evil spirit herself? Are the monsters physical beings, or simply extensions of her own dark thoughts?

Is she in a struggle to remove them in haste before they completely overtake her? Has she done this before? In this fantastically weird scene, Kukiiyaut’s colourful sense of play and mysticism is evident. The evil spirits are in her control, at least for now.

In Myra Kukiiyaut’s (1929–2006) evocative composition Evil Spirits (1971) we are given a glimpse into a wonderfully peculiar world.

The central figure appears to be a woman who has caught two spirits by their tongues. One, in the form of a bird man with clawed toes and a spade tongue, curiously shares the same pattern on his winged parka as the woman’s amautik. This shared pop of colour is subtly strange, as it suggests a familial tie between the two— these garments would no doubt have been made by the same seamstress. His right wing blends in with her akuq as she holds his tongue more aggressively than the tongue of the two-headed bird spirit to her right.

It calls to mind a parent or schoolmaster of old holding misbehaving children by their ears, walking swiftly along as she corrects them. The creature beneath is snapping and snarling at their feet, but she is coolly in charge, despite all of them. The somewhat comical bird spirit also shares the same pattern on its wing as the woman and although she seems to hold the bird spirit’s tongue a bit more gingerly, she keeps a wary peripheral eye on them all.

In comparison to Kenojuaq Ashevak’s, CC, ONu, RCA (1927– 2013) famously rounded and equidistant depictions, which invite us softly into her enchanted realms, Kukiiyaut’s pen is sharper and more pointed, hinting at a more menacing world; tangled forms, claws and limbs grasping and reaching, mouths agape with sharp teeth, plunging and hoping for a taste of flesh.

Just as Kukiiyaut’s lines are snarling and entangled, so are the realms of anguish and anxiety. This piece might suggest a woman wrestling with her demons, but the universe of spiritual beings that surround Inuit and share our land, sea and sky is very real. I vividly remember the whispering of ijirait as a child, during recess or after school visits, when the adults were still

— Tarralik Duffy is a writer, multidisciplinary artist and designer from Salliq (Coral Harbour), NU. Much of her visual work centres on contemporary Inuit culture; her fine jewellery line Ugly Fish regularly appears in fashion events and gallery shops across Canada. She is the winner of the 2021 Kenojuak Ashevak Memorial Award.

OPPOSITE

Myra Kukiiyaut — Evil Spirits 1971 Printmaker Phillipa Aningnerk Iksiraq Stonecut and stencil 65 × 82.6 cm COURTESY THE UNIVERSITY OF SASKATCHEWAN © THE ARTIST

Unikkaat/Unikkaaqtuat

21

Front

Visit archaeological sites and learn first-hand from experts

©Martin Lipman

Dip your feet in the Arctic Ocean

©Martin Lipman

Seek polar bears in Peel Sound

Meet our cultural ambassador Karen Nutarak

©Martin Lipman

©Dennis Minty

©Dennis Minty

Kayak the face of a glacier

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ARTISTS’ CORNER

Introducing co-delivery pilot initiative to support Inuit artists The Inuit Art Foundation and the Canada Council for the Arts are thrilled to announce the development of a new national Inuit-specific funding pilot initiative in the spirit of self-determination. The Council is supporting the IAF to work with Inuit communities throughout Inuit Nunangat and the South to co-develop a multidisciplinary granting pilot program that will launch this coming winter and distribute over $100,000 in its first year.

program will also offer capacity-building opportunities for Inuit as program officers and on assessment juries.

Access to Inuit-specific grants at this level will create opportunities for Inuit artists to be part of both private and public art opportunities.

Without the necessity of frequent sales, an artist is free to explore art creation outside the confines of the commercial art market.

To learn more about the program and help shape its future, please visit inuitartfoundation.org/IAFxCCA and sign up for the IAF’s newsletter. Information will also be available to artists directly through the IAF’s Developing Qanuqtuurniq: Inuit Artist Portal, launching this fall.

This partnership builds on both organizations’ mutual commitments to supporting Inuit artists in all aspects of their careers. The Canada Council for the Arts is Canada’s public arts funder, with a mandate to foster and promote the study and enjoyment of, and the production of works in, the arts. The Inuit Art Foundation seeks to empower Inuit artists’ self-expression and self-determination across disciplines, while increasing access to and awareness of artists’ work.

Grounded in Inuit Qaujimajatuqangit, this pilot program will be shaped by community feedback across Inuit Nunangat and Southern Canada to ensure it meets the needs of artists working today. To support Inuit leadership in all aspects of the arts, the pilot Inuit Art Quarterly

24

Summer 2022

ARTISTS’ CORNER

“Over the past few years we have made great strides in representation for Inuit within arts administration, but for the Inuit Art Foundation to be a part of this funding model is a huge leap towards Inuit self-determination.

Artists will be free to express themselves with less market pressures and I am excited to see how this further shapes the evolution of Inuit art.”

“I am thrilled that the synergies and connections we are forging, through the 2022 Arctic Arts Summit, have led us to launch this groundbreaking national pilot program dedicated to Inuit funding. By working in partnership and collaboration with the Inuit Art Foundation to establish a system of support for Inuit artists, we intend to enable the pursuit of sustainable careers in arts and culture, and to contribute to capacity building within communities across Canada.”

HEATHER CAMPBELL STRATEGIC INITIATIVES DIRECTOR, INUIT ART FOUNDATION

MICHAEL MASSIE, CM, RCA INUK ARTIST, PREVIOUS CANADA COUNCIL GRANT RECIPIENT AND IAF BOARD MEMBER

SIMON BRAULT DIRECTOR AND CEO, CANADA COUNCIL FOR THE ARTS

Being awarded a grant as an artist is a big encouragement.

The money does come in handy, especially when you’re starting out. When I first graduated I received a grant from Canada Council not long after and that allowed me to buy just about all my jewellery and silversmithing tools.

It helped me get a really good start in setting up my own practice and business when it came time to do that.”

OPPOSITE

Qavavau Manumie — Lucky Man 2013 Stonecut and stencil 41 × 62 cm

In Partnership

REPRODUCED WITH PERMISSION DORSET FINE ARTS © THE ARTIST

Unikkaat/Unikkaaqtuat

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Front

PROFILE

Nurrahaq

by Kaitlyn Purcell

Nurrahaq appears on the screen surrounded by a monochromatic haze of soft sage. From their mint highlights, teal beaded earrings and freshly painted apartment, I imagine the comfort that this lived palette must bring them.

Born and raised in Arviat, NU, the young artist now lives in Ottawa, ON. Work is two weeks in, two weeks out at Meadowbank Agnico Eagle Gold Mine in the Kivalliq Region of Nunavut.

Nurrahaq’s oil paintings and digital works are a celebration of choosing joy Inuit Art Quarterly

over fear and to honour where they come from. The Raven Asking for Forgiveness to the Owl (2021) is a celebration of the old stories that were passed down by their parents and grandparents. In Cloud Berry, Aqpik (2020), glee emanates from bare curvatures of the human figure.

Nurrahaq receives commissions through social media for their artwork.

One oil painting, Dancing underneath the northern lights (2020), is featured on the album cover for Aasiva’s Niriunniq (2021).

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Nurrahaq’s use of chartreuse and white across a navy sky, and the illuminated blue snow, creates a nearly colour-blocked landscape, highlighting the naked form of the half-owl, half-woman’s body. Wearing nothing but her traditional tattoos and the light, she dances with the northern night sky.

Nurrahaq explains to me that their paintings are inspired by the true beauty of human bodies, seeing it everywhere around them. Nurrahaq says that as a bisexual non-binary woman, they are compelled by their appreciation for the human body in all forms.

During our conversation I tell Nurrahaq that I, too, am bisexual and struggled to come out to my family until recently. I ask Nurrahaq if they might like to speak to these issues around coming out, especially since their artwork is so focused on the sensuality and adoration of feminine figures.

They note that their family has mixed feelings about their orientation. While some of their more religious Christian relatives’ uneasiness has made their relationships a little more distant, Nurrahaq says that some of their family “are really chill about it. [A] few of them are finally accepting that I’m into women, and men, and [non-binary people].” 1 They also live with a cousin who came out when they were in high school.

The feelings of fear over their sexuality are something that took a lot of space in their thoughts growing up, but after high school, Nurrahaq said to themself: “I’m completely done with this bullshit. I just— I don’t care. It’s just me. So, everyone should accept it or not.”

I admire their boldness and can see how this translates through their artwork and the ways they protect their creative practice through work-life balance. They explain how they separate their job from their creative practice: working to live, rather than living to work. As someone suffering from academic burnout and physical ailments, I admire the ease with which Nurrahaq understands their needs and boundaries.

“I like to lay down, play video games, play with my makeup and art,” they say with a big smile and one of their infectious giggles.

Summer 2022

PROFILE

OPPOSITE

Nurrahaq — Dancing underneath the northern lights 2020 Oil painting 182.9 × 60.9 cm ALL © THE ARTIST

ABOVE

Cloud Berry, Aqpik 2020 Oil painting 60.9 × 43.2 cm BELOW

The Raven Asking for Forgiveness to the Owl 2021 Oil painting 76.2 × 101.6 cm

The games Minecraft, Animal Crossing and Black Ops II come into the conversation, and I ask them if there are any other forms of popular culture that interested them growing up. “It’s mostly from anime and my own tradition,” says Nurrahaq. “I’m currently watching My Dress-Up Darling. It’s a little 13+ kind of anime.”

Meeting Nurrahaq reminded me how important it is to celebrate our ancestral stories and queer identities, and to fiercely protect what brings us happiness. This artist savours the process of creating the stories behind each piece, and the fluidity of painting digitally and with oils. Nurrahaq’s creative practice and artworks are testimonies in an appreciation of body, spirit and finding queer joy.

— Kaitlyn Purcell (she/they) is a Dene-Irish artist, writer and PhD candidate at the University of Calgary. They are the recipient of numerous awards, including a doctoral research SSHRC award and the Metatron Prize for their debut poetic novella ʔbédayine. Most recently, they collaborated with emerging artists and scholars from Siksika Nation and the University of Calgary to create an audiovisual installation TIPI_LOOPS.dreamwaves at the Esker Foundation.

NOTES

This Profile was made possible through support from RBC Emerging Artists.

Unikkaat/Unikkaaqtuat

1

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All quotes from Nurrahaq, interview with Kaitlyn Purcell, March 2022.

Front

Home to the Art of Canada An Agency of the Government of Ontario

JUNE 15 TO DECEMBER 10 2022

Souvenir

solo exhibition at Onsite Gallery 199 Richmond St. W.

pi’tawita’iek: we go up river

outdoor mural at 100 McCaul St. As part of

ocadu.ca/onsite

Ketu’elmita’jik (They want to come home) as installed at Art Gallery of Nova Scotia, December 1, 2018 to March 31, 2019

With Additional Support From: Bill Morneau and Nancy McCain Foundation, and Partners in Art

HELP SHAPE THE FUTURE OF THE INUIT ART FOUNDATION! The IAF needs your help to determine its new strategic plan this year. We want to hear what’s most important to you to support the future of Inuit art.

HAVE YOUR SAY TODAY AT INUITARTFOUNDATION.ORG/ SURVEY2022

Artist Esmaa Mohamoud in her studio, Toronto, ON Photography: Dane Cutcliffe

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127427 (11/2021)

In the Moment:

THE TRANSFORMATION OF TRANSPORTATION IN INUIT ART —

by Gayle Uyagaqi Kabloona Translated by Jeela Palluq-Cloutier

ᑕᒡᕙᐅᑎᓪᓗᒍ:

ᐃᖏᕐᕋᔾᔪᑎᑦ ᐊᓯᔾᔨᖅᓯᒪᓕᕐᓂᖏᑦ ᐃᓄᐃᑦ ᓴᓇᐅᒐᖏᓐᓂ — ᑎᑎᕋᖅᑐᖅ ᒐᐃᔪ ᖃᑉᓗᓈᖅ ᐃᓄᒃᑑᓕᖅᑎᕆᔪᖅ ᔩᓚ ᕿᓕᖅᑎ

These artworks express how Inuit ingenuity and adaptation have come full circle in depictions of transportation, from Kiviuq fleeing cannibals by dog team to present-day Inuit reconnecting to traditional lands using drone technology.

PREVIOUS

Victoria Mamnguqsualuk — Untitled c. 2013 Duffle, felt, embroidery floss 144.5 × 71.5 cm © THE ARTIST

ABOVE

Pudlo Pudlat — Qulaguli (Helicopter) 1979 Printmaker Saggiaktok Stonecut and stencil 60 × 83 cm REPRODUCED WITH PERMISSION DORSET FINE ARTS COURTESY DAVIC GALLERY © THE ARTIST

Inuit Art Quarterly

The arctic landscape is one of change, seasonal melts and freezes to which Inuit adapt and celebrate. That same mastery of constant change can be witnessed in our historical and modern cultural interactions with settler society. The artists and images shown here are inspiring in exciting ways. Many artists chose to document the fluidity of their world through images of the forms of transportation used in the early days. Looking back, it’s beautiful to see how we adapted tools of the Western world into our traditional ways.

Each individual in our dynamic history of Inuit artists—spanning from those born and raised on the land, to those living in communities and outwards to a new generation of artists in urban centres—use depictions of different modes of transport to convey their lives, cultural identity and authentic selves in innovative ways.

My grandma, Victoria Mamnguqsualuk (1930– 2016), was well known for her portrayal of Kiviuq and his adventures. Kiviuq is a shape-shifting hero of the North; his stories are known across Inuit Nunangat. My grandma’s storytelling style used drawings or cut-out fabric appliqués arranged to

34

tell tales of his many exploits. In one particular legend, Kiviuq encounters a camp of cannibals and narrowly escapes with his life.

Something that makes me smile in my grandma’s artwork is the quiet transition from traditional modes of transport to new Western transportation vehicles. In my grandma’s earlier art, Kiviuq would escape from the cannibals by dog team and qamutiik, but later in her life she showed Kiviuq escaping by Ski-Doo or ATV. Kiviuq’s upgraded escape vehicle shows how Inuit adopted modern technology into our culture: demonstrating the strong cultural resilience of our stories and ways, the evolution of culture with time and Inuit artists’ ability to create real portrayals of their lives, resisting tokenization by the outside world.

When I visited my family in Qamani’tuaq (Baker Lake), NU, we spent a lot of time on the land. We boated, ATVed and skidooed on the same land my relatives used to live on. My dad still tells me the names of each hill, lake and area we visit.

He tells me the story of a legendary man who built an inuksuk that reached the sky, and you can still

Summer 2022

ᑖᒃᑯᐊ ᓴᓇᐅᒐᑦ ᓴᖅᑭᑦᑎᓯᒪᔪᑦ ᐃᓄᐃᑦ ᐃᓱᒪᒐᔾᔫᓂᖏᑦ ᓱᖏᐅᑎᔪᓐᓇᕐᓂᖏᑦ ᐃᓗᐃᑦᑐᕈᖅᓯᒪᓕᖅᐳᑦ ᓴᓇᙳᐊᖅᐸᒃᑕᖏᓐᓂᒃ ᐃᖏᕐᕋᔾᔪᑎᓂᒃ, ᑕᐃᔅᓱᒪᓂᓂᑦ ᑭᕕᐅᖅ ᕿᒫᓪᓗᓂ ᐃᓄᒃᑐᖅᑎᓂᒃ ᕿᒧᒃᓯᒃᑯᑦ ᒫᓐᓇᒧᑦ ᐃᓄᐃᑦ ᓄᓇᒥᖕᓂᒃ ᑲᒪᔪᓐᓇᖅᓯᓪᓗᑎᒃ ᖃᖓᑕᑎᑕᐅᓲᑎᒍᑦ ᖃᕋᓴᐅᔭᓕᕆᔾᔪᑎᓄᑦ.

ᐅᑭᐅᖅᑕᖅᑑᑉ ᓄᓇᖓ ᐊᓯᔾᔨᖅᐸᓪᓕᐊᖏᓐᓇᐅᔭᕐᒪᑦ, ᐊᐳᑦ ᐊᐅᒃᐸᓪᓕᐊᓕᖅᐸᒃᖢᓂ ᖁᐊᖅᐸᒃᖢᓂᓗ ᐃᓄᐃᑦ ᓱᖏᐅᑎᓯᒪᓕᖅᑕᖓᑦ ᖁᕕᐊᒋᓪᓗᓂᔾᔪᒡᓗ. ᐊᓯᔾᔨᖅᐸᓪᓕᐊᖏᓐᓇᐅᔭᕐᒥᔪᖅᑕᐅᖅ ᐱᖅᑯᓯᑦᑎᒍᑦ ᑲᑎᖃᑎᖃᖃᑦᑕᖅᓯᒪᓂᕗᑦ ᑕᐃᔅᓱᒪᓂᓂᑦ ᒫᓐᓇᒧᑦ ᖃᓪᓗᓈᓂᒃ ᑎᑭᑉᐸᓪᓕᐊᔪᓂᒃ. ᓴᓇᙳᐊᖅᑎᑦ ᓴᓇᐅᒐᖏᓪᓗ ᖁᕕᐊᓇᖅᖢᑎᒃ ᐊᔾᔪᒥᓇᖅᑐᑦ. ᐊᒥᓱᑦ ᓴᓇᙳᐊᖅᑎᑦ ᑕᐅᑐᙳᐊᖅᑕᒥᖕᓂᒃ ᓴᖅᑭᑦᑎᖃᑦᑕᖅᑐᑦ ᐊᔾᔨᒌᙱᑦᑐᓂᒃ ᐃᖏᕐᕋᔾᔪᑎᕕᓂᕐᓂᒃ ᑕᐃᔅᓱᒪᓂᓂᓴᕐᓂᒃ. ᑭᖑᒻᒧᑦ ᑕᑯᓪᓕᒋᑦ, ᐱᐅᔪᐊᓗᒃ ᑕᑯᓪᓗᒍ ᖃᓄᖅ ᖃᓪᓗᓈᑦ ᐃᒋᕐᕈᑎᖏᓐᓂᒃ ᐱᖅᑯᓯᑦᑎᓐᓄᑦ ᐊᑐᓕᖅᓯᒪᖕᒪᖔᑦᑕ. ᐊᑐᓂ ᐃᓄᖕᓂᒃ ᓴᓇᙳᐊᖅᑎᓂᒃ ᓯᕗᓕᖃᖅᖢᑎᒃ - ᐃᓚᖏᑦ ᓄᓇᒥ ᐃᓅᓯᒪᓪᓗᑎᒃ ᐱᕈᖅᓴᖅᓯᒪᓪᓗᑎᒃ, ᐃᓚᖏᓪᓗ ᓄᓇᓕᖕᓃᖦᖢᑎᒃ, ᓯᓚᑎᖏᓐᓄᓪᓗ ᓄᑖᑦ ᓴᓇᙳᐊᖅᑎᐅᓕᖅᑐᑦ ᓄᓇᓕᐸᐅᔭᕐᓂ ᓄᓇᖃᓕᖅᖢᑎᒃ - ᐊᔾᔨᒌᙱᑦᑐᓂᒃ ᐃᖏᕐᕋᔾᔪᑎᓂᒃ ᐊᑐᖅᖢᑎᒃ ᐃᓅᓯᕐᒥᖕᓂᒃ, ᐃᓕᖅᑯᓯᕐᒥᖕᓂᒃ ᐃᒻᒥᒥᙶᖅᑐᓂᒡᓗ ᓄᑖᓂᒃ ᓴᓇᙳᐊᖅᐸᓕᖅᑐᑦ. ᐊᓈᓇᑦᑎᐊᕋ, ᕕᒃᑐᕆᐊ ᒪᒻᖑᖅᓱᐊᓗᒃ (1930–2016), ᖃᐅᔨᒪᔭᐅᑦᑎᐊᓚᐅᖅᑐᖅ ᓴᓇᙳᐊᖅᐸᒃᑕᖏᓐᓄᑦ ᑭᕕᐅᕐᒥᒃ. ᑭᕕᐅᖅ ᐊᓯᙳᖅᑕᕈᓐᓇᖅᖢᓂ ᖃᐅᔨᒪᔭᐅᑦᑎᐊᖅᑐᖅ ᐅᑭᐅᖅᑕᖅᑐᕐᒥᐅᓄᑦ; ᐃᓄᐃᑦ ᓄᓇᖓᓐᓂ ᐅᓂᒃᑳᕆᔭᐅᕙᒃᑐᖅ. ᐊᓈᓇᑦᑎᐊᒪ ᐅᓂᒃᑳᖅᑐᐊᕈᓯᖓ ᑎᑎᕋᐅᔭᕐᓂᒃᑯᑦ ᖃᓪᓗᓈᖅᑕᓂᒡᓘᓐᓃᑦ ᒥᖅᓱᒐᓕᐅᕐᓂᒃᑯᑦ ᐅᓂᒃᑳᕆᕙᒃᑕᖏᑦ. ᐃᓚᖓᓐᓂ, ᑭᕕᐅᖅ ᐃᓄᒃᑐᖅᑎᓄᐊᖅᓯᒪᓚᐅᖅᖢᓂ ᑐᖁᑕᐅᑲᓴᑦᑎᐊᖅᖢᓂ ᕿᒪᒃᓯᔪᖅ. ᖁᖓᔾᔪᑎᒋᕙᒃᑕᕋ ᐊᓈᓇᑦᑎᐊᕐᒪ ᓴᓇᐅᒐᖏᓐᓂᑦ ᐊᓯᔾᔨᖅᐸᓪᓕᐊᓯᒪᓂᖏᑦ ᐃᖏᕐᕋᔾᔪᑕᐅᕙᓚᐅᖅᓯᒪᔪᓂᑦ ᒫᓐᓇ ᖃᓪᓗᓈᓂᙶᖅᑐᓂᑦ ᐃᖏᕐᕋᔾᔪᑕᐅᕙᓕᖅᑐᓄᑦ. ᐊᓈᓇᑦᑎᐊᕐᒪ ᓴᓇᐅᒐᕆᙵᖅᓯᒪᔭᖏᓐᓂ, ᑭᕕᐅᖅ ᐃᓄᒃᑐᖅᑎᓂᒃ ᕿᒫᔪᖅ ᕿᒧᒃᓯᒃᑯᑦ ᖃᒧᑏᖕᓂ, ᑭᓯᐊᓂ ᑭᖑᓂᐊᒍᑦ ᓴᓇᓕᕆᓪᓗᓂᐅᒃ ᑭᕕᐅᖅ ᕿᒫᔪᖅ ᖃᒧᑕᐅᔭᒃᑯᑦ ᑎᓴᒪᓕᒃᑯᓪᓘᓐᓃᑦ. ᑭᕕᐅᑉ ᕿᒫᔾᔪᑎᒋᒪᖓ ᐃᖏᕐᕋᔾᔪᑎᒃᑯᑦ ᓴᖅᑭᑦᑎᕗᖅ ᐃᓄᐃᑦ ᐊᑐᓕᖅᓯᒪᓕᕐᓂᖏᓐᓂᒃ ᓄᑖᓂᒃ ᐊᑐᒐᒃᓴᓂᒃ ᐃᓕᖅᑯᓯᑦᑎᓐᓄᑦ: ᓴᖅᑭᔮᖅᑎᑦᑎᓪᓗᑎᒃ ᐃᓄᐃᑦ ᐅᓂᒃᑳᖅᑐᐊᕈᓯᖓᑦ ᐃᓕᖅᑯᓯᖏᓪᓗ ᓴᙱᔫᓂᖏᓐᓂᒃ, ᐃᓕᖅᑯᓯᖅ ᐊᓯᔾᔨᖅᐸᓪᓕᐊᑎᓪᓗᒍ ᐃᓄᐃᓪᓗ ᓴᓇᙳᐊᖅᑎᑦ ᐃᓅᓯᕐᒥᓂᙶᖅᑐᓂᒃ ᓴᖅᑭᑦᑎᔪᓐᓇᕐᓂᖏᑦ ᓯᓚᑖᓂᙶᖅᑐᓄᑦ ᒥᒃᖠᑎᖅᑕᐅᓯᒪᑦᑕᐃᓕᓪᓗᑎᒃ. ᐃᓚᒃᑲ ᐅᐸᒃᑲᒃᑭᑦ ᖃᒪᓂ’ᑐᐊᕐᒥ, ᓄᓇᕗᒻᒥ, ᐊᐅᓪᓛᖅᓯᒪᐃᓐᓇᐸᓗᓚᐅᖅᑐᒍᑦ. ᐅᒥᐊᖅᑐᖅᐸᒃᖢᑕ, ᑎᓴᒪᓕᒃᑯᑦ ᖃᒧᑕᐅᔭᒃᑯᓪᓗ ᓯᕗᓕᒪ ᓄᓇᒋᕙᓚᐅᖅᑕᖏᓐᓂ. ᐊᑖᑕᒪ ᓱᓕ ᐅᖃᐅᑎᕙᒃᑖᖓ ᖃᖅᑲᐃᑦ, ᑕᓰᑦ ᐊᒻᒪ ᓄᓇᐃᑦ ᐊᑎᖏᓐᓂᒃ

Unikkaat/Unikkaaqtuat

ᐅᐸᒃᑕᑦᑎᓐᓂᒃ. ᐅᓂᒃᑲᐅᑎᕙᒃᑖᖓ ᐊᖑᒻᒥᒃ ᐃᓄᒃᓱᓕᐅᓚᐅᖅᓯᒪᔪᒥᒃ ᐊᖏᔪᐊᓗᖕᒥᒃ, ᑕᑯᔭᒃᓴᐅᔪᖅ ᓱᓕ ᑐᐱᖃᕐᕕᕕᓂᖓ ᑕᓯᐅᑉ ᓴᓂᐊᓂ, ᐊᒥᕐᓂᒃ ᑐᐱᖃᖅᐸᒃᑎᓪᓗᒋᑦ, ᐃᓄᐃᓪᓗ ᓄᓇᐃᓐᓇᕐᒥᐅᑕᐅᓱᖓᖅᑎᓪᓗᒋᑦ ᐊᑐᖅᑕᐅᔪᕕᓂᖅ. ᒫᓐᓇ, ᐅᐸᒃᐸᒃᑕᕗᑦ ᑎᓴᒪᓕᒃᑯᑦ ᖃᒧᑕᐅᔭᒃᑯᓪᓘᓐᓃᑦ, ᐅᓪᓗᐃᓐᓇᖅ ᑐᒃᑐᓕᐊᖅᓯᒪᔭᕌᖓᑦᑕ ᐊᖅᑯᓵᓕᖅᑐᓂᒃ. ᓲᖃᐃᒻᒪᓕ, ᑭᕕᐅᖅ ᒫᓐᓇᓯᐅᑎᓄᑦ ᐃᖏᕐᕋᔪᓐᓇᓚᐅᖅᐳᖅ ᐅᓂᒃᑳᖅᑐᐊᖏᓐᓂ ᑕᐃᒪᐃᓚᐅᕐᒥᒐᑦᑕ. ᐱᐅᒋᓂᖅᐹᕆᖃᑕᐅᖕᒥᔭᕋ ᓴᓇᙳᐊᖅᑎᐅᓚᐅᖅᑐᖅ, ᐸᓪᓗᖅ ᐳᓪᓚᑦ (1916–1992), ᐃᓅᓚᐅᖅᓯᒪᔪᖅ ᐋᒪᕐᔪᐊᖅ ᐸᓯᐅᑉ ᖃᓂᒋᔭᖓᓂ ᕿᑭᖅᑖᓗᖕᒥ ᓯᕗᓪᓕᖅᐸᐅᓚᐅᖅᑐᒃᓴᐅᓪᓗᓂᓗ ᐃᖏᕐᕋᔾᔪᑎᓂᒃ ᐊᓯᔾᔨᖅᐸᓪᓕᐊᓕᖅᑐᓂᒃ ᑕᐃᔅᓱᒪᓂᓂᑦ ᒫᓐᓇᒧᑦ ᓴᓇᐅᒐᖏᓐᓂ ᓴᖅᑭᑦᑎᓪᓗᓂ. ᐊᒥᓱᑦ ᓴᓇᐅᒐᖏᑦ ᑕᖅᓴᕆᑦᑎᐊᖅᑐᑦ ᐱᐅᔪᐊᓗᐃᑦ, ᑲᒪᓇᐅᔭᖅᖢᑎᒃ ᖁᓛᒎᓕᑦ ᖃᖓᑕᓲᓪᓗ ᑎᖕᒥᔪᑦ ᐃᓄᐃᑦ ᖁᓕᖏᑎᒍᑦ. ᖁᓛᒎᓕᖕᒥ (1979) ᐳᓪᓚᑦ ᑎᑎᕋᐅᔭᖅᓯᒪᔪᖅ ᖁᓛᒎᓕᖕᒥᒃ ᐃᓄᐃᑦ ᖁᓕᖏᑎᒍᑦ ᖃᖓᑕᔪᒥᒃ. ᖁᓛᒎᓕᖕᒥᒃ ᐊᖁᑎ ᐊᓐᓄᕌᒥᓂᒃ ᐊᑐᖅᖢᓂ ᐃᓄᒃ ᐊᓈᓇᐅᔪᖅ ᐊᒪᐅᓯᔭᖅᖢᓂᒃ ᑲᒦᖕᓂᒡᓗ ᐊᑐᖅᖢᓂ. ᕿᑐᕐᖓᖏᑦ ᖃᓂᒋᔭᖓᓂ ᐱᙳᐊᖅᑐᑦ ᖁᓕᑦᑕᐅᔭᖅᓯᒪᓪᓗᑎᒃ ᑯᑯᒃᐹᓕᖕᓂᒃ, ᖃᓂᒃᑐᒥ ᐱᔅᓯᓕᐅᖅᖢᑎᒃ ᐃᓂᓯᓯᒪᓪᓗᑎᒡᓗ ᐊᓪᓕᓂᕐᓂᒃ. ᐳᓪᓚᑉ ᓴᓇᐅᒐᖏᑦ ᓴᖅᑭᔮᖅᑎᑦᑎᕗᑦ ᓴᓂᓕᕇᖕᓂᖏᓐᓂᒃ ᐃᓄᐃᑦ ᐃᓅᓯᖏᑦ ᖃᓪᓗᓈᓪᓗ ᐃᓕᖅᑯᓯᖏᑦ. ᓴᓇᐅᒐᕐᒥ ᖁᓛᒎᓕᒃ (1979) ᓴᖅᑭᑦᑎᔪᖅ ᐃᓄᐃᑦ ᖃᓪᓗᓈᓪᓗ ᐊᔾᔨᒌᙱᓐᓂᖏᓐᓂᒃ. ᑭᓯᐊᓂ, ᑎᑎᕋᐅᔭᖅᑐᖅ ᖁᓛᒎᓕᖕᒥᒃ ᑎᑎᖅᓯᒪᓪᓗᓂ ᑕᖅᓴᖃᖅᑎᑦᑎᓪᓗᓂᓗ ᐃᓄᐃᑦ ᐊᓐᓄᕌᖏᑦᑕ ᑕᖅᓴᖏᑦᑕ ᐊᔾᔨᖏᓐᓂᒃ. ᑕᒪᒃᑯᐊ ᓴᓇᐅᒐᐅᓂᖏᑦ ᐊᔾᔨᒌᙱᑦᑐᓂᒃ ᖃᒡᓕᑎᑦᑎᔪᑦ, ᓲᕐᓗ ᑕᐃᔅᓱᒪᓂᑑᓚᐅᖅᓯᒪᓂᖏᑎᑐᑦ. ᐳᓪᓚᐅᑉ ᐊᓯᖏᓐᓂᑦ ᓴᓇᐅᒐᖏᓐᓂ, ᑕᑯᔪᓐᓇᖅᑐᒍᑦ ᐃᓄᐃᑦ ᖃᓪᓗᓈᒥᙶᖅᑐᓂᒃ ᐃᖏᕐᕋᔾᔪᑎᓂᒃ ᐊᑐᒐᒃᓴᓂᒡᓗ ᐊᑐᓕᖅᐸᓪᓕᐊᓕᓚᐅᖅᓯᒪᓂᖏᓐᓂᒃ. ᑐᒃᑐ ᑕᑯᓇᓱᒃᑐᖅ (1977), ᓴᓇᙳᐊᖅᑎ ᒪᕐᕉᖕᓂᒃ ᐃᓕᖅᑯᓰᖕᓂᒃ ᑲᑎᑦᑎᓪᓗᓂ ᐱᐅᔪᐊᓗᖕᒥᒃ ᐊᑕᐅᓯᙳᖅᑎᑦᑎᓯᒪᔪᖅ. ᐳᓪᓚᑦ ᑎᑎᖅᑐᒐᖅᑐᖅ ᖃᖓᑕᓲᕐᒥᒃ ᓄᓇᐅᑉ ᖁᓛᒎᖅᑐᒥᒃ, ᑭᓯᐊᓂ ᐃᓄᖏᑦ ᓇᑦᑎᕋᓱᒃᑐᑦ ᖃᔭᕆᐊᒃᑯᑦ, ᐊᐅᓚᐅᑎᖃᖅᖢᑎᒃ ᖁᑭᐅᑎᖃᖅᖢᑎᒡᓗ. ᑕᖅᓴᕆᑦᑎᐊᖅᑐᑦ ᐃᒪᖏᑦ ᐃᖅᑲᐃᓯᓐᓇᖅᐳᖅ ᐅᑭᐅᖅᑕᖅᑐᕐᒥ ᓯᕿᓂᖅ ᓂᐱᓕᖅᑎᓪᓗᒍ ᑕᖅᓴᖏᓐᓂᒃ, ᐃᒡᓗᕋᓛᖅᑕᖃᖅᖢᓂ ᐅᖓᓯᒃᑐᒥ, ᐃᓄᐃᓪᓗ ᐊᓃᖅᑐᑦ ᐊᖑᓇᓱᒃᑐᓪᓘᓐᓃᑦ ᑕᑯᒃᓴᐅᓪᓗᑎᒃ. ᑖᓐᓇ ᓴᓇᔭᐅᓯᒪᔪᖅ 1977-ᒥ 2022-ᖑᓕᖅᑎᓪᓗᒎᔪᓐᓇᕐᒥᔪᖅ,

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ᑭᖑᓂᐊᒍᑦ ᑕᑯᒃᓴᐅᑎᑕᐅᔪᑦ

ᕕᒃᑑᕆᐊ ᒪᒻᖑᖅᓱᐊᓗᒃ — ᑕᐃᒡᒍᓯᖃᖖᒋᑦᑐᖅ c. 2013 ᖃᓪᓗᓈᖅᑕᖅ ᐃᔾᔪᔪᖅ, ᖃᓪᓗᓈᖅᑕᖅ ᑕᖅᓯᖅᓱᖅᓯᒪᓪᓗᓂᓗ 144.5 × 71.5 cm © ᓴᓇᙳᐊᖅᑎ

ᑭᒡᓗᒧᑦ

ᐸᓪᓗᖅ ᐳᓪᓚᑦ — ᖁᓛᒎᓕᒃ 1979 ᑎᑎᖅᑐᒐᖅᑎ ᓵᒋᐊᖅᑐᖅ ᓴᓇᐅᒐᖅ ᒥᖑᐊᖅᓯᒪᔪᖅ 60 × 83 cm ᐊᔾᔨᙳᐊᖅ ᑕᐃᕕᒃ ᑕᑯᔭᖓᖃᕐᕕᖕᒥᑦ ᓴᓇᔭᐅᒃᑲᓐᓂᖅᑐᖅ ᐊᖏᖅᑕᐅᓯᒪᓪᓗᑎᒃ ᑭᙵᐃᑦ ᓴᓇᐅᒐᓕᐅᕐᕕᖓᓐᓂᑦ © ᓴᓇᙳᐊᖅᑎ

In the Moment

see tent rings by that lake, evidence of my family’s summer days spent there in caribou-skin tents, when they still lived nomadically. Now, we visit by ATV or Ski-Doo, on day trips hunting the caribou that still migrate through the area. Of course, Kiviuq would travel by modern means in his stories—we did too.

Another of my favourite early artists, Pudlo Pudlat (1916–92), was born in a camp near Amadjuaq Lake on Baffin Island and was one of the first artists to show the transition between traditional life and modern technology. Many of his bold and colourful artworks feature beautiful, almost whimsical helicopters and airplanes flying over scenes of daily Inuit life.

In Qulaguli (Helicopter) (1979) Pudlat shares a scene of a helicopter flying over an Inuit family.

The helicopter pilot wears a southern flight uniform while the Inuit mother wears a traditional amauti and kamiit. Her children play around her feet dressed in tiny handmade parkas with traditional pointy hoods, next to drying fish or bedding on lines.

Pudlat’s art shows the juxtaposition of Inuit life with Western culture. The piece depicts Inuit and qallunaat as quite contrasting. However, the artist uses stripes and colours in the helicopter that are reflected in the patterns and colours of the Inuit family’s clothing. These design

Inuit Art Quarterly

elements bring these different ways of being closer, much like how they would exist together in the world.

In other artwork by Pudlat, we can see the beginnings of Inuit adopting Western vehicles and technology. In Curious Caribou (1977), the artist artfully brings the two cultures together to create one beautiful scene. Pudlat shows his signature airplane flying over the tundra, but now Inuit are seal hunting using freighter canoes, motors and rifles. His rendition of a colourful ocean archipelago is evocative and calls to mind a beautiful arctic sunset, cabins in the distance, Inuit out enjoying the day and hunting for food. This image from 1977 could easily portray a nice summer day in 2022, yet it was one of the first to show how Inuit culture was beginning to change and incorporate new elements.

Tim Pitsiulak (1967–2016) was an incredible artist. I’ve seen some of his artwork in person, notably a massive eight-foot-long drawing of an armored whale at the National Gallery of Canada in Ottawa, ON. His style is realistic, detailed, grand and sometimes mystical. Somehow he managed to capture the movement of a swimming bear from underwater or each individual spot of every narwhal in a pod. Born in Kimmirut, NU, and later based in Kinngait (Cape Dorset), NU, he enjoyed a prolific career.

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BELOW

Victoria Mamnguqsualuk — Composition (Scenes on the Land) n.d.

Coloured pencil 56.5 × 76.2 cm COURTESY FEHELEY FINE ARTS © THE ARTIST

OPPOSITE

Tim Pitsiulak — Massive Move 2013 Chalk pastel 109.2 × 175.3 cm COURTESY MADRONA GALLERY © THE ARTIST

Summer 2022

ᓯᕗᓪᓕᖅᐸᐅᖃᑕᐅᓪᓗᓂ ᓴᖅᑭᑦᑎᓯᒪᔪᖅ ᖃᓄᖅ ᐃᓄᐃᑦ ᐃᓕᖅᑯᓯᖓᑦ ᐊᓯᔾᔨᖅᐸᓪᓕᐊᓕᓚᐅᕐᓂᖓᓂᒃ ᓄᑖᕐᓂᒃ ᐊᑐᓕᖅᐸᓪᓕᐊᓕᖅᑎᓪᓗᒋᑦ ᑎᒻ ᐱᑦᓯᐅᓛᖅ (1967–2016) ᓴᓇᙳᐊᒃᑲᒻᒪᕆᐊᓗᒃ. ᓇᖕᒥᓂᖅ ᑕᑯᓯᒪᔪᖓ ᓴᓇᐅᒐᖏᑦᑕ ᐃᓚᖏᓐᓂᒃ, ᐃᖅᑲᐅᒪᓗᐊᖅᑕᕋ 8 f-ᓂᒃ ᐊᖏᓂᓕᒃ ᓯᓚᑖᒍᑦ ᓴᐅᓂᖃᙳᐊᖅᑐᖅ ᐊᕐᕕᙳᐊᖅ ᓴᖅᑭᔮᖅᑐᖅ ᑲᓇᑕᒥ ᓴᓇᙳᐊᒐᕐᓄᑦ ᑕᑯᔭᒐᖃᕐᕕᖕᒥ ᐋᑐᕚᒥ, ᐋᓐᑎᐅᕆᐅᒥ. ᓴᓇᔾᔪᓯᖓ ᐱᓪᓚᕆᖕᓂᙶᖅᖢᑎᒃ, ᐊᑕᖏᐅᒪᑦᑎᐊᖅᖢᑎᒃ, ᐊᖏᔫᓪᓗᑎᒃ ᐃᓛᓐᓂᒃᑯᓪᓗ ᑲᒪᓇᖅᖢᑎᒃ. ᖃᓄᑭᐊᖅ ᑎᑎᕋᐅᔭᕈᓐᓇᑦᑎᐊᖅᑐᖅ ᓇᓄᕐᒥᒃ ᐳᐃᒥᒃᑐᒥᒃ ᐊᓪᓚᙳᐊᓂᒡᓘᓐᓃᑦ ᐊᑐᓂ ᑎᑎᕋᐅᔭᖅᓯᒪᑦᑎᐊᖅᖢᑎᒃ ᓴᖅᐸᓃᑦᑐᓂᒃ. ᐃᓅᓚᐅᖅᓯᒪᓪᓗᓂ ᑭᒻᒥᕈᕐᒥ, ᓄᓇᕗᒻᒥ, ᑭᖑᓂᖓᒍᑦ ᑭᙵᕐᓃᓕᖅᖢᓂ, ᓄᓇᕗᒻᒥ, ᓴᓇᙳᐊᖅᑎᓪᓚᕆᐅᓚᐅᖅᑐᖅ. ᐃᓚᖏᑦ ᐱᑦᓯᐊᓛᑉ ᓴᓇᐅᒐᖏᑦ ᖃᐅᔨᒪᔭᐅᓗᐊᙱᓐᓂᖅᓴᐅᔪᑦ ᐱᓪᓚᑦᑖᖑᖅᑰᔨᔪᑦ ᖃᐅᑕᒫᑦ ᐊᑐᖅᑕᐅᕙᓚᐅᖅᑐᓂᒃ ᑭᙵᕐᓂ 2000ᖏᓐᓂ, ᓄᓇᓕᒃ 1,400-ᓂᒃ ᐃᓄᒋᐊᒃᑎᒋᓪᓗᓂ. ᓅᓐᓂᕐᔪᐊᕐᒥ (2013), ᐳᐊᕐᕆᓯᓕᒡᔪᐊᖅ ᐅᓯᔪᖅ ᖃᔭᕆᐊᕐᒥᒃ 1970-ᒥ ᓴᓇᓚᐅᖅᓯᒪᔭᖓᑕ ᐊᔾᔨᖓᓂᒃ. ᑕᐃᒪᐃᑦᑐᒥᒃ ᑕᑯᓯᒪᕗᖓ ᐅᑭᐅᖅᑕᖅᑐᕐᒥ: ᐳᐊᕐᕆᓯᓕᒡᔪᐊᖅ ᕿᑯᖅᓯᒪᙱᑦᑐᒃᑯᑦ ᐊᖅᑯᑎᒃᑯᑦ ᖃᔭᕆᐊᕐᒥᒃ ᓄᓇᒧᑦ ᐅᓯᔪᒥᒃ. ᓄᑕᕋᐅᓂᕆᓚᐅᖅᑕᒧᑦ ᐃᖅᑲᐃᓯᓐᓇᑦᑎᐊᖅᑐᖅ ᐊᖏᔪᐊᓗᖕᒥᒃ ᐊᐅᓚᐅᑎᓕᖕᒥᒃ ᐅᓯᔪᒥᒃ ᐊᓯᐊᓂᒃᑕᐅᖅ ᐊᐅᓚᐅᑎᓕᖕᒥᒃ. ᐱᑦᓯᐊᓛᑉ ᑎᑎᕋᐅᔭᖅᑕᖏᑦ ᐃᖏᕐᕋᔾᔪᑎᕐᔪᐊᓂᒃ ᐃᖅᑲᐃᓯᔾᔪᑎᒋᖕᒥᔭᒃᑲ ᐊᓃᕈᑎᒋᕙᓚᐅᖅᑕᓐᓂᒃ ᐃᖃᓗᖕᓂ ᓄᓇᖃᖅᑎᓪᓗᖓ ᒫᓐᓇ ᑕᑯᕙᒍᓐᓃᖅᑕᒃᑲ ᐋᑐᕚᒥᐅᑕᐅᓕᖅᑎᓪᓗᖓ, ᓲᕐᓗ ᒥᑦᑕᕐᕕᓕᐊᖅᖢᖓ

Unikkaat/Unikkaaqtuat

ᐃᖏᕐᕋᔾᔪᑎᕐᔪᐊᕐᓂᒃ ᖃᖓᑕᓲᕐᔪᐊᕌᓗᖕᒥᑦ ᓂᐅᕋᖅᑕᐅᔪᓂᒃ ᐅᒡᕙᓘᓐᓃᑦ ᐊᐅᔭᒃᑯᑦ ᐅᓯᑲᖅᑕᖅᑎ ᐅᒥᐊᕐᔪᐊᕐᒥᙶᖅᑐᓂᒃ ᓂᐅᕋᐃᑎᓪᓗᒍ. ᐱᑦᓯᐅᓛᑉ ᓴᓇᐅᒐᖏᑦ ᓱᓕᔫᓂᕋᕈᓐᓇᖅᐸᒃᑲ, ᐅᒃᐱᕈᓱᖕᒥᒐᒪ ᐆᒪᔪᓂᒃ ᐊᒪᐅᓯᖅᓯᒪᔪᓂᒃ ᐃᒪᕐᒥ ᒧᒥᕈᓐᓇᖅᑐᓂᒃ. ᑭᓯᐊᓂ ᐃᓱᒪᓕᖅᐸᒃᑐᖓ ᓴᓇᔭᒥᓂᒃ ᐊᓯᑦᑎᓐᓄᑦ ᑐᕌᖓᑎᑦᑎᕙᖕᓂᕐᒪᖔᑦ ᑲᒪᓇᖅᑐᓂᒃ ᖃᐅᑕᒫᖅᓯᐅᑎᓂᒡᓗ ᑎᑎᕋᐅᔭᖃᑦᑕᕈᓯᖏᓐᓄᑦ. ᓴᓇᓯᒪᕙ ᑕᑯᔭᒐᖃᕐᕕᖕᓃᓐᓂᐊᖅᑐᓂᒃ ᐊᓯᑦᑎᓐᓄᑦ ᑕᑯᔭᐅᔪᒃᓴᓂᒃ ᐊᒻᒪ ᓴᓇᕙᒡᓗᓂ ᐃᓄᖕᓄᑦ ᑐᕌᖓᔪᓂᒃ? ᐃᖅᑲᐅᒪᔾᔪᑎᒃᓴᑦᑎᓐᓂᒃ ᐊᖏᕐᕋᐅᑉ ᓂᐱᓂᒃ, ᑎᐱᓂᒃ ᐃᒃᐱᖕᓇᕐᓂᖏᓐᓂᓪᓗ? ᓴᓇᐅᒐᖅ ᓅᑦᑎᔪᓐᓇᕐᓂᖃᖅᑐᖅ ᐃᓕᖅᑯᓯᕐᓂᑦ, ᖃᖓᒃᑰᕐᓂᕐᓂᑦ, ᓇᓃᕐᓂᕐᓂᓪᓗ. ᓯᕗᓕᕗᑦ ᑎᑎᕋᐅᔭᖅᓯᒪᔪᑦ ᐅᓂᒃᑳᑦᑎᓐᓂᒃ ᐃᓅᓯᑦᑎᓐᓂᒡᓗ ᐱᐅᔪᐊᓗᒃᑎᒍᑦ ᓴᖅᑭᑦᑎᓪᓗᑎᒃ. ᑎᑎᕋᐅᔭᑦᑎᐊᖅᓯᒪᔪᐊᓗᒃ ᓅᓐᓂᕐᔪᐊᕐᒥᒃ ᓴᖅᑭᑦᑎᓂᖓ ᐅᓪᓗᖅ ᐅᖅᑰᑦᑎᐊᖅᖢᓂ ᐳᔫᓪᓗᓂᓗ ᕿᒃᑐᕆᐊᖅᑕᐅᔾᔭᐃᒃᑯᑎᒥᒃ ᑎᒍᓯᔪᒪᔾᔪᑎᒋᔭᕋ, ᓯᑯᐃᖅᐸᓪᓕᐊᓂᖓᓂ ᕿᒃᑐᕆᐊᖃᓕᕐᓂᐊᕐᓂᖓ ᖃᐅᔨᒪᓪᓗᒍ! ᐊᑐᓂ ᓴᓇᙳᐊᖅᑎᑦ ᐊᕙᑎᒥᖕᓂᒃ ᕿᒥᕐᕈᑦᑎᐊᖅᓯᒪᔪᐊᓘᓪᓗᑎᒃ ᐃᓱᒪᓕᐅᒃᑲᒻᒪᕆᐅᓪᓗᑎᒡᓗ. ᐱᓕᕆᐊᕆᔭᒥᖕᓂ ᐃᒃᐱᖕᓇᕈᓐᓇᖅᓯᑎᑦᑎᔪᓐᓇᕐᓂᖅ ᐊᖏᔪᒻᒪᕆᐊᓗᒃ. ᓴᓇᙳᐊᖅᑎᓄᑦ ᓄᓇᓕᐸᐅᔭᕐᒥ ᐊᖏᕐᕋᓐᓂᑦ ᓅᑎᑕᐅᔪᓐᓇᖅᑐᖓ ᐅᖅᓱᐊᑦᑎᐊᖅᑐᒧᑦ (ᐳᓪᓚᑦ) ᓴᐳᔾᔭᐅᓯᒪᓗᖓᓘᓐᓃᑦ ᒪᖁᖕᒥᑦ ᐊᓄᕆᒥᓪᓗ (ᐋᓚᓐ). ᖁᕕᐊᒋᑦᑎᐊᖅᑕᕋ ᐃᖅᑲᐃᓯᔭᐅᓪᓗᖓ ᐃᓅᓯᓐᓂᒃ ᐅᑭᐅᖅᑕᖅᑐᕐᒥ ᑎᑎᕋᐅᔭᖅᓯᒪᔪᑎᒍᑦ, ᐃᓕᓴᐅᓯᒪᔪᑎᒍᑦ ᐅᖃᓕᒫᒐᑎᒍᓪᓘᓐᓃᑦ ᐅᕙᓐᓄᑦ ᓇᒃᓯᐅᔾᔭᐅᔪᓂᒃ. ᑲᒪᓇᕆᒻᒪᕆᒃᑕᕋ ᐊᓈᓇᑦᑎᐊᕐᒪ ᓴᓇᐅᒐᖏᑦ

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ᑭᒡᓗᒧᑦ

ᕕᒃᑑᕆᐊ ᒪᒻᖑᖅᓱᐊᓗᒃ — ᐋᖅᑭᒃᑕᐅᓯᒪᓂᖓ (ᐊᔾᔨᙳᐊᑦ ᓄᓇᒥ) ᐅᓪᓗᖓ ᓇᓗᓇᐃᖅᓯᒪᙱᑦᑐᖅ ᐊᒥᐊᓕᑦ ᑎᑎᕋᐅᑎᑦ 56.5 × 76.2 cm ᐊᔾᔨᙳᐊᖅ ᕙᕼᐃᓕ ᓴᓇᐅᒐᖃᕐᕕᖕᒥᑦ © ᓴᓇᙳᐊᖅᑎ

ᖁᓛᓂ

ᑎᒻ ᐱᑦᓯᐊᓛᖅ — ᓅᓐᓂᕐᔪᐊᖅ 2013 ᑕᖅᓴᕆᙱᑦᑐᑦ 109.2 × 175.3 cm ᐊᔾᔨᙳᐊᖅ ᒪᑐᕉᓇ ᑕᑯᔭᒐᖃᕐᕕᖕᒥᑦ © ᓴᓇᙳᐊᖅᑎ

In the Moment

Inuit Art Quarterly

38

Summer 2022

Unikkaat/Unikkaaqtuat

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In the Moment

PREVIOUS

Eldred Allen — Narrow Sunrise 2020 Digital photograph © THE ARTIST

RIGHT

Ricky Jaw — Chopper Motorcycle 2018 Serpentinite 17.8 × 38.1 × 10.2 cm COURTESY INUITARTSCULPTURES.COM © THE ARTIST

OPPOSITE

Kyle Natkusiak Aleekuk — OGs 2021 Digital illustration © THE ARTIST

Some of Pitsiulak’s lesser-known works are hyper-realistic images of what everyday moments were like in Kinngait in the 2000s, now a community of 1,400 people. In Massive Move (2013), a loader carries the same style of freighter canoe as Pudlat’s drawing from the 1970s. I’ve seen the same moment played out in the North: a loader rattling down a corrugated dirt road bringing someone’s boat to shore. I can assure you that some childhood itch is scratched seeing one big machine carrying another.

Pitsiulak’s depictions of big vehicles also remind me of the type of outings I’d get up to when I lived in Iqaluit, NU, that I don’t experience anymore now that I live in Ottawa, such as going to the airport to watch heavy equipment offloaded from a Hercules aircraft or sea cans tugged to shore from the sealift barge in summer.

I wouldn’t call Pitsiulak’s everyday images more authentic or real, because I believe in amauti-wearing animals dancing underwater as well. But it does make me wonder if he had different audiences in mind for his mystical and everyday-moment artworks. Was one intended for galleries and the outside world while the other was made specifically for us Inuit? To remind us of the sounds, smells and feelings of home?

Art has an incredible power to transport across culture, time and place. Those who came before us recorded our stories and ways of life in such beautiful ways. A successful drawing like Massive Move evokes a hot and dusty day and makes me want to reach for the mosquito repellant, knowing that the ice is breaking up and the bugs will be out!

Each artist here possesses an innate capacity for observation and vivid imagination.

Inuit Art Quarterly

The talent involved in creating a feeling is huge. The artists featured here transport me from the urban centre I now call home to a crystal-clear day with mirror flat water (Pudlat) or cozy days sheltered from the rain and wind (Eldred Allen). I love being reminded of my life in the North through images, installations or magazines sent to me in the South. I’m also moved by the way my grandmother’s art captures the changing world we live in while remaining true to our stories and culture, taking us all on a visual tour through time. Art from the early days remains an important visual record and the conception of an evolving genre.

There is a new generation of artists depicting their lives as Inuit in the present.

They are having fun with new ideas, like presenting typically Western objects in a traditional Inuit art medium, such as Ricky Jaw’s serpentinite motorcycle. Contemporary Inuit artists are carrying on the traditions of recording their social and cultural lives in the present moment, expanding the ways early artists viewed the world using new tools and skills. Artists from the Inuit homeland and outward remain culturally connected through art.

Yet no matter how boundary pushing, this new wave of artists always gives respect to our culture and history.

Artists are also bringing Inuit art into new mediums. Kyle Natkusiak Aleekuk from the Inuvialuit Settlement Region, and based in Edmonton, AB, uses digital art to play with contemporary representations of his identity. He explores his culture as an urban Inuvialuk through art that shows his use of modern modes of transportation to

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experience traditional values and activities like hunting and tattooing. He incorporates a neo-traditional Western tattoo style into his artwork to merge badass Western culture with badass Inuk culture.

Eldred Allen is a photographer from Nunatsiavut who uses digital photography and drone technology to capture his home in a beautiful way. He photographs the stunning landscapes of our nuna in a way only someone from the area could create. His work often includes the boats and vehicles Inuit use today to pursue their traditional activities.

In his outdoor scenes he always manages to capture the weather we all know—cold and crisp or wet and chilly!

Mark Igloliorte, also Nunatsiavummiuk, experiments with modern and traditional modes of transportation, notably depictions of the Inuit qajaq and skateboard. He melds traditional and modern forms into one another and back again by painting Inuktut words and images onto skateboards. He also brings the Inuit qajaq into the southern world through experiential art forms.

Igloliorte is renewing the ideas of tradition by integrating ancient technology into modern artwork and urban settings in a truly unique way.

It’s not just the subjects that have changed, but the ways we put our art out into the world. My grandma would receive materials from the government-run artist co-op and bring her art back in hopes of a sale. She was a unilingual Inuktitut speaker and art was her only source of income.

Sometimes her work was rejected by the co-op. In the early days of settlement, the Canadian Eskimo Arts Council (CEAC), which was composed entirely of southern,

Summer 2022

ᓴᖅᑭᑦᑎᓯᒪᖕᒪᑕ ᐃᓅᓯᑦᑎᓐᓂᒃ ᐊᓯᔾᔨᖅᐸᓪᓕᐊᔪᓂᒃ ᓱᓕ ᐅᓂᒃᑳᖅᑎᓂᒃ ᐃᓕᖅᑯᓯᑦᑎᓐᓂᒃ ᓴᖅᑭᔮᖅᑎᑦᑎᓪᓗᓂ, ᑕᑯᒃᓴᒃᑯᑦ ᐊᑐᖅᑕᐅᓯᒪᓕᖅᑐᓂᒃ ᓴᖅᑭᑦᑎᓪᓗᓂ. ᓯᕗᓪᓖᑦ ᓴᓇᙳᐊᖅᑕᐅᓯᒪᔪᑦ ᐱᒻᒪᕆᐅᕗᑦ ᐊᑐᖅᓯᒪᔭᑦᑎᓐᓂᒃ ᓴᖅᑭᑦᑎᖕᒪᑕ ᐊᓯᔾᔨᖅᐸᓪᓕᐊᓂᕐᓗ ᐅᔾᔨᕐᓇᖅᖢᓂ. ᓄᑖᓂᒃ ᓴᓇᙳᐊᖅᑎᑕᖃᓕᖅᐸᓪᓕᐊᔪᖅ ᒫᓐᓇᐅᔪᖅ ᐃᓅᓯᕐᒥᖕᓂᒃ ᓴᖅᑭᑦᑎᓪᓗᑎᒃ. ᓄᑖᓂᒃ ᐃᓱᒪᑖᖅᐸᓪᓕᐊᓪᓗᑎᒃ, ᓴᖅᑭᑦᑎᔪᑦ ᖃᓪᓗᓈᓂᙶᖅᓯᒪᔪᓂᒃ ᐃᓄᐃᑦ ᓴᓇᙳᐊᒐᖏᑎᒍᑦ, ᓲᕐᓗ ᕆᑭ ᔮᑉ ᓴᓇᙳᐊᖅᓯᒪᔭᖓ ᐅᒃᑯᓯᒃᓴᕐᒥᑦ ᒪᕐᕈᓕᒃ ᐃᖏᕐᕋᔾᔪᑦ. ᐃᓄᐃᑦ ᓴᓇᙳᐊᖅᑏᑦ ᓴᖅᑭᑦᑎᕙᓪᓕᐊᖃᑕᐅᓯᒪᕗᑦ ᐃᓅᓯᖏᓐᓂᒃ ᐃᓕᖅᑯᓯᖏᓐᓂᒡᓗ ᐊᑐᖅᑕᒥᖕᓂᒃ, ᐃᓚᒋᐊᖅᓯᓯᒪᓕᖅᖢᑎᒃ ᓯᕗᓪᓕᕐᓂ ᓴᓇᙳᐊᖅᑕᐅᓯᒪᔪᓂᒃ ᐊᑐᖅᖢᑎᒃ ᓄᑖᓂᒃ ᓴᓇᙳᐊᕈᑎᓂᒃ ᐱᔪᓐᓇᕐᓂᖅᑖᕆᓯᒪᔭᒥᖕᓂᒡᓗ. ᓴᓇᙳᐊᖅᑎᑦ ᐃᓄᐃᑦ ᓄᓇᖏᓐᓃᑦᑐᑦ ᐊᓪᓚᖅᓯᒪᓕᖅᑐᓪᓗ ᐃᓕᖅᑯᓯᕐᒥᓄᑦ ᑲᓱᖅᓯᒪᐃᓐᓇᖅᑐᑦ ᓴᓇᙳᐊᒐᕐᒥᒃᑎᒍᑦ. ᖃᓄᑐᐃᓐᓇᖅ ᐊᓯᔾᔨᖅᐸᓪᓕᐊᓕᕋᓗᐊᕐᒪᑦ, ᓄᑖᑦ ᓴᓇᙳᐊᖅᑎᑦ ᐃᒃᐱᒍᓱᑦᑎᐊᕐᓂᖃᐃᓐᓇᖅᑐᑦ ᐃᓄᐃᑦ

Unikkaat/Unikkaaqtuat

ᐃᓕᖅᑯᓯᖏᓐᓂᒃ ᐊᑐᖅᓯᒪᔭᖏᓐᓂᒡᓗ. ᓴᓇᙳᐊᖅᑎᑦᑕᐅᖅ ᐃᓄᐃᑦ ᓴᓇᐅᒐᖏᓐᓂᒃ ᓄᑖᓂᒃ ᓴᓇᙳᐊᕈᑎᖃᖅᐸᓕᕐᒥᔪᑦ. ᑲᐃᐅᓪ ᓇᑦᑯᓯᐊᖅ ᐊᓖᑯᒃ ᐃᓄᕕᐊᓗᐃᑦ ᓄᓇᖓᓐᓐᙶᖅᓯᒪᔪᖅ, ᒫᓐᓇ ᓄᓇᖃᓕᖅᑐᖅ ᐃᑦᒪᓐᑕᓐ, ᐋᓪᐴᑕᒥ, ᐊᑐᖅᐸᒃᑐᖅ ᖃᕋᓴᐅᔭᓕᕆᔾᔪᑎᑎᒍᑦ ᑭᓇᐅᓂᕐᒥᓂᒃ ᓴᓇᙳᐊᖅᐸᒃᖢᓂ. ᐃᓄᕕᐊᓘᓪᓗᓂ ᖃᓪᓗᓈᑦ ᓄᓇᖓᓐᓂ ᓄᓇᖃᓕᖅᖢᓂ ᐃᓕᖅᑯᓯᓂ ᓴᖅᑭᑎᑉᐸᒃᑕᖓ ᒫᓐᓇ ᐃᖏᕐᕋᔾᔪᑕᐅᕙᒃᑐᓂᒃ ᐊᑐᖅᖢᓂ ᐱᖅᑯᓯᑐᖃᕐᓂᒃ ᓴᖅᑭᑦᑎᓪᓗᓂ ᓲᕐᓗ ᐊᖑᓇᓱᖕᓂᕐᒥᒃ ᑲᑭᓐᓂᓕᐅᕐᓂᑯᕙᒃᑐᓂᒡᓗ. ᐃᓕᖅᑯᓯᕐᒥᙶᖅᑐᑦ ᒫᓐᓇᓕᓴᐅᓕᖅᖢᓂᒋᑦ ᑲᑭᓐᓂᓕᐅᖅᐸᒃᑐᖅ ᑲᑎᑎᖦᖢᒋᑦ ᖃᓪᓗᓈᓂᙶᖅᑐᑦ ᐃᓄᖕᓂᙶᖅᑐᓪᓗ ᐃᓕᖅᑯᓯᑦ. ᐃᓪᑐᕆᑦ ᐋᓚᓐ ᐊᔾᔨᓕᐅᕆᔨᐅᔪᖅ ᓄᓇᑦᓯᐊᕗᒻᒥᑦ ᖃᕋᓴᐅᔭᒃᑯᑦ ᐊᔾᔨᓕᐅᕈᑎᓂᒃ ᖃᖓᖅᑕᐅᕙᒃᑐᓂᒡᓗ ᐊᑐᖅᖢᓂ ᐊᖏᕐᕋᒥᓂᒃ ᐊᔾᔨᓕᐅᕆᕙᒃᑐᖅ ᐱᐅᔪᐊᓗᖕᓂᒃ. ᐊᔾᔨᓕᐅᕆᕙᒃᑐᖅ ᓄᓇᑦᑎᐊᕚᓗᖕᓂᒃ ᑕᐅᕙᓂᕐᒥᐅᑕᓄᑐᐊᖅ ᓴᖅᑭᑕᐅᔪᓐᓇᖅᑐᓂᒃ. ᐃᓚᓕᐅᔾᔨᓯᒪᒐᔪᒃᑐᖅ ᐅᒥᐊᕐᓂᒃ ᐃᖏᕐᕋᔾᔪᑎᓂᒡᓗ ᒫᓐᓇ ᐃᓄᐃᑦ ᐊᑐᖅᐸᓕᖅᑕᖏᓐᓂᒃ ᐃᓕᖅᑯᓯᕐᒥᖕᓂᒃ ᐱᓕᕆᐊᖃᖅᑎᓪᓗᒋᑦ. ᓯᓚᒥᑦ ᐊᔾᔨᓕᐅᖅᑕᖏᑦ

41

ᑕᐃᒪᐅᓚᐅᖅᑐᒥ

ᐄᓪᑐᕆᑦ ᐋᓚᓐ — ᓯᕿᓂᖅ ᓄᐃᓕᖅᑎᓪᓗᒍ 2020 ᐊᔾᔨᙳᐊᖅ © ᓴᓇᙳᐊᖅᑎ

ᑭᒡᓗᒧᑦ

ᕆᑭ ᔮ — ᒪᕐᕈᓕᒃ ᐃᖏᕐᕋᔾᔪᑦ 2018 ᐅᒃᑯᓯᒃᓴᖅ 17.8 × 38.1 × 10.2 cm ᐊᔾᔨᙳᐊᖅᑖᕐᕕᐅᔪᖅ INUITARTSCULPTURES.COM © ᓴᓇᙳᐊᖅᑎ

ᐊᓪᓕᕐᒥ

ᑲᐃᔪᓪ ᑲᑦᑯᓯᐊᖅ ᐃᓖᑯᒃ — OGs 2021 ᖃᕋᓴᐅᔭᒃᑯᑦ ᓴᓇᙳᐊᖅᓯᒪᔪᖅ © ᓴᓇᙳᐊᖅᑎ

In the Moment

BELOW

Megan Kyak-Monteith — Groceries at Night 2020 Oil on panel 60.9 × 60 cm COURTESY MARION SCOTT GALLERY © THE ARTIST

OPPOSITE

Mark Igloliorte — A Kayak Design on A Skateboard on A Drafting Table, Another Version 2017 Graphite and crayon 50.8 × 106.7 cm COURTESY ART GALLERY OF GUELPH © THE ARTIST

Inuit Art Quarterly

settler Canadians, rejected thousands of images created by Inuit artists. These authentic pieces of art were deemed unmarketable; their value was derived solely from a southern non-Inuit art market.

Inuit artists like me can now distribute our art online, which allows much more autonomy, without the oversight by non-Inuit of what is and what isn’t “Inuit art.” I think the definition of Inuit art itself is expanding, as we can use different social-media platforms to display our art to each other. When I first started making artwork, I had reservations of plugging into the unequal power dynamic between artist and viewer because historically these were made up of Inuit and non-Inuit.

But I can now post an image and get support and feedback from others like me and be inspired by other artists keeping art relevant and authentic.

These artists have brought their own unique take on Inukness and art into their current

42

moments. I think what past artists have created is room for all of us, space to create and freedom to express ourselves however we are.

Each piece of artwork gives us insight into the evolution of our culture and shows a cultural resilience through a period of highly concentrated change: from my grandma swapping a dog team with a Ski-Doo in an oral legend to the extent that I’m moved by a pencil drawing of a truck. To me, a green freighter canoe is just as evocative of Inuit culture as an inuksuk or iglu.

— Gayle Uyagaqi Kabloona is an Utkuhikhalingmiut multidisciplinary artist and writer currently based in Ottawa, ON. She creates graphic and bold prints and ceramics based on her family’s artistic legacy. She is a resident artist at the Art Galley of Guelph and her first solo show Kajuhiutihimajatka: What I’m Carrying On, opened in April 2022.

Summer 2022

ᖃᐅᔨᒪᔭᑦᑎᓐᓂᒃ ᓯᓚᒥᒃ ᓴᖅᑭᑦᑏᓐᓇᐅᔭᖅᑐᖅ ᓂᒡᓚᓱᒃᑐᒥᒃ ᒪᓴᒡᒥᓪᓘᓐᓃᑦ ᕿᐅᓐᓇᖅᑐᒥ! ᓄᓇᑦᓯᐊᕗᒻᒥ ᒫᒃ ᐃᒡᓗᓕᐅᖅᑎ ᑕᐃᔅᓱᒪᓂᓂᓴᕐᓂᒃ ᒫᓐᓇᓕᓴᕐᓂᒡᓗ ᐃᖏᕐᕋᔾᔪᑎᓂᒃ ᓴᓇᓇᓱᒃᐸᒃᑐᖅ, ᓲᕐᓗ ᐃᓄᐃᑦ ᖃᔭᖓ ᓵᑦᑐᔮᕐᒥ ᐊᒃᓴᓗᐊᕋᓛᓕᖕᒥ ᑎᑎᕋᐅᔭᖅᓯᒪᓪᓗᓂᐅᒃ. ᐃᓕᖅᑯᓯᑐᖃᕐᒥᙶᖅᑐᓂᒃ ᒫᓐᓇᓕᓴᕐᓄᑦ ᑭᐳᒻᒧᓪᓗ ᑲᑎᑎᑦᑎᕙᒃᑐᖅ ᐊᒥᐊᖅᓯᓪᓗᓂ ᐃᓄᒃᑎᑑᖅᓯᒪᔪᓂᒃ ᐃᓄᖕᓂᙶᖅᓯᒪᔪᓂᒡᓘᓐᓃᑦ ᓵᑦᑐᔮᓄᑦ ᐊᒃᓴᓗᐊᕋᓛᓕᖕᓄᑦ. ᐃᓄᐃᓪᓗ ᖃᔭᖓᑦ ᖃᓪᓗᓈᓄᑦ ᓴᖅᑭᑉᐸᒃᖢᒋᑦ ᐊᔾᔨᒌᙱᑦᑐᒃᑯᑦ ᓴᓇᙳᐊᕈᓯᒃᑯᑦ. ᐃᒡᓗᓕᐅᖅᑎ ᓄᑖᕈᕆᐊᖅᑎᑦᑎᓯᒪᔪᖅ ᐃᓕᖅᑯᓯᑐᖃᕐᓂᒃ ᐊᑐᖅᑕᐅᕙᒃᓯᒪᔪᑐᖃᕐᓂᒃ ᒫᓐᓇᓕᓴᕐᓄᑦ ᓄᓇᓕᐸᐅᔭᓃᑦᑐᓄᓪᓗ ᓴᓇᙳᐊᖅᐸᒃᖢᓂᒋᑦ ᐊᔾᔨᐅᙱᑦᑐᒃᑯᑦ. ᓴᓇᙳᐊᖅᑕᐅᕙᒃᓯᒪᔪᑦ ᐊᓯᔾᔨᖅᓯᒪᔪᑑᙱᑦᑐᑦ, ᐊᓯᔾᔨᖅᓯᒪᓕᕐᒥᔪᖅ ᖃᓄᖅ ᓴᓇᙳᐊᖅᑕᐅᔪᑦ ᓄᓇᕐᔪᐊᕐᒧᑦ ᓴᖅᑭᑕᐅᕙᓕᕐᒪᖔᑕ. ᐊᓈᓇᑦᑎᐊᕋ ᓴᓇᔭᒃᓴᖅᑖᖅᐸᓚᐅᖅᑐᖅ ᒐᕙᒪᒃᑯᓐᓄᑦ ᐊᐅᓚᑕᐅᔪᒥᒃ ᓴᓇᙳᐊᖅᑎᓄᑦ ᑯᐊᐸᒥᑦ ᓴᓇᙳᐊᖅᑕᖏᓪᓗ ᑖᒃᑯᓄᖓ ᓂᐅᕐᕈᑎᒋᓇᓱᒃᐸᒃᖢᒋᑦ. ᐃᓄᒃᑎᑐᑦ ᐅᖃᐅᓯᑐᐊᖃᖅᖢᓂ ᓴᓇᙳᐊᕐᓂᕐᒥᒍᓪᓗ ᑮᓇᐅᔭᓕᐅᕈᑎᑐᐊᖃᖅᖢᓂ. ᐃᓛᓐᓂᒃᑯᑦ ᑯᐊᐸᒃᑯᑦ ᓂᐅᕕᖅᐸᓚᐅᙱᑦᑐᑦ ᓴᓇᙳᐊᒐᖏᓐᓂᒃ. ᓄᓇᓕᖕᓄᑦ ᓅᓯᒪᓕᓵᖅᑎᓪᓗᒋᑦ, ᑲᓇᑕᒥ ᐃᓄᐃᑦ ᓴᓇᙳᐊᒐᖏᓐᓂᒃ ᑲᑎᒪᔨᑦ, ᖃᓪᓗᓈᖏᓐᓇᐅᓪᓗᑎᒃ, ᑲᓇᑕᒧᐊᓵᖅᑐᕕᓂᐅᖏᓐᓇᐅᓪᓗᑎᒃ, ᕿᐱᓗᖃᑦᑕᖅᓯᒪᔪᑦ ᐊᒥᓱᕐᔪᐊᒻᒪᕆᐊᓗᖕᓂᒃ ᐃᓄᐃᑦ ᓴᓇᐅᒐᖏᓐᓂᒃ. ᑖᒃᑯᐊ ᓴᓇᙳᐊᖅᑕᐅᓯᒪᔪᑦ ᓂᐅᕐᕈᑎᒃᓴᐅᔪᓐᓇᕋᓱᒋᔭᐅᓇᑎᒃ; ᐱᔭᐅᔪᒥᓇᕐᓂᖏᑦ ᖃᓪᓗᓈᖏᓐᓇᕐᓄᑦ ᓴᓇᙳᐊᖅᑐᓕᕆᔨᓄᑦ ᐃᓱᒪᓕᐊᕆᔭᐅᕙᓚᐅᖅᑐᑦ. ᐃᓄᐃᑦ ᓴᓇᙳᐊᖅᑎᑦ ᒫᓐᓇ ᓴᓇᐅᒐᕐᒥᒃ ᓂᐅᕐᕈᑎᖃᕋᓱᒍᓐᓇᖅᓯᔪᑦ ᐃᑭᐊᖅᑭᕕᒃᑯᑦ, ᐃᒻᒥᓂᖅᓱᕐᓂᖅᓴᐅᓕᖅᖢᑎᒃ, ᐃᓅᙱᑦᑐᓄᓪᓗ ᐊᐅᓚᑕᐅᔪᓐᓃᖅᖢᑎᒃ ᑭᓱᑦ “ᐃᓄᖕᓂᑦ ᓴᓇᐅᒐᐅᖕᒪᖔᑕ.” ᐃᓄᐃᑦ ᓴᓇᐅᒐᖏᑦᑕ ᑐᑭᖓᑦᑕᐅᖅ ᑐᓴᐅᒪᔭᐅᓂᖅᓴᐅᕙᓪᓕᐊᓇᓱᒋᖕᒥᔭᕋ, ᐊᔾᔨᒌᙱᑦᑐᒃᑯᑦ

Unikkaat/Unikkaaqtuat

ᓄᑖᓕᐊᑎᒍᑦ ᓴᖅᑭᔮᖅᑎᑦᑎᔪᓐᓇᓕᕋᑦᑕ ᓴᓇᐅᒐᑦᑎᓐᓂᒃ. ᓴᓇᖃᑦᑕᓕᓵᖅᖢᖓ, ᖁᓱᓚᐅᖅᑐᖓ ᓴᓇᙳᐊᖅᑎᑦ ᓴᓇᙳᐊᒐᖅᑖᖅᐸᒃᑐᓪᓗ ᓇᓕᒧᒌᙱᓗᐊᕐᓂᖏᓐᓄᑦ ᑕᐃᔅᓱᒪᓂᓂᑦ ᐃᓄᐃᑦ ᖃᓪᓗᓈᓪᓗ ᐊᔾᔨᒌᙱᑦᑐᒻᒪᕆᐅᓚᐅᖅᓯᒪᖕᒪᑕ. ᑭᓯᐊᓂᓕ ᒫᓐᓇ ᓴᖅᑭᑦᑎᔪᓐᓇᓕᖅᑐᖓ ᓴᓇᐅᒐᓐᓂᒃ ᐃᑲᔪᖅᓱᖅᑕᐅᓗᖓ ᐅᖃᐅᔾᔪᖅᑕᐅᓗᖓᓗ ᐊᓯᓐᓂᑦ ᐅᕙᑦᑑᖅᑐᓂᑦ ᐃᓱᒪᑖᖅᐸᒃᖢᖓᓗ ᐊᓯᓐᓂᑦ ᓴᓇᙳᐊᖅᑎᓪᓚᕆᖕᓂᑦ. ᓴᓇᙳᐊᖅᑎᑦ ᓇᖕᒥᓂᖅ ᓴᓇᐅᒐᕐᒥᓂᒃ ᐃᓅᓂᕐᒥᓂᒡᓗ ᓴᖅᑭᑦᑎᕙᓕᖅᑐᑦ ᐅᓪᓗᒥᓕᓴᐅᓕᖅᑐᓂᒃ. ᓴᓇᙳᐊᖅᑎᐅᕙᓚᐅᖅᓯᒪᔪᓄᑦ ᐱᕕᖃᖅᑎᑕᐅᓇᓱᒋᕗᖓ, ᐃᓂᖃᖅᖢᑕ ᐃᓱᒪᖅᓱᖅᖢᑕᓗ ᐅᕙᑦᑎᓐᓂᒃ ᖃᓄᐃᑦᑑᒐᓗᐊᕈᑦᑕ ᓴᖅᑭᑎᑦᑐᓐᓇᓕᕋᑦᑕ. ᓴᓇᙳᐊᖅᑕᓕᒫᕗᑦ ᓴᖅᑭᑦᑎᕙᒃᐳᑦ ᐃᓕᖅᑯᓯᑦᑕ ᐊᓯᔾᔨᖅᐸᓪᓕᐊᓂᖏᓐᓂᒃ ᑕᑯᒃᓴᐅᑎᑦᑎᓪᓗᓂᓗ ᓴᙱᔫᓂᑦᑎᓐᓂᒃ ᐊᓯᔾᔨᖅᐸᓪᓕᐊᕐᔪᐊᖅᓯᒪᔪᒥᒃ ᐊᑐᖅᑎᓪᓗᑕ: ᐊᓈᓇᑦᑎᐊᕋ ᑕᐅᖅᓰᓪᓗᓂ ᕿᒧᒃᓯᕐᓂᒃ ᖃᒧᑕᐅᔮᖕᓄᑦ ᐅᓂᒃᑳᖅᑐᐊᕐᒥᑦ ᐊᒡᓛᓪᓘᓐᓃᑦ ᐊᒃᑐᖅᑕᐅᓯᒪᓪᓗᖓ ᑎᑎᕋᐅᑎᒧᑦ ᑎᑎᕋᐅᔭᖅᑕᐅᓯᒪᔪᒥᒃ ᓄᓇᒃᑰᕈᑎᙳᐊᕐᒥᒃ. ᐅᕙᓐᓄᑦ, ᖃᔭᕆᐊᑦ ᐃᓄᒃᓯᐅᑎᐅᑎᒋᑎᑕᒃᑲ ᐃᓄᒃᓱᒃᑎᑐᑦ ᐃᒡᓗᑎᑐᓪᓘᓐᓃᑦ.

— ᑭᓇᐅᓂᖓ ᒐᐃᔪ ᐅᔭᒐᕿ ᖃᑉᓗᓈᖅ ᐅᑦᑯᓯᒃᓴᓕᖕᒥᙶᖅᓯᒪᔪᖅ ᐊᔾᔨᒌᙱᑦᑐᓂᒃ ᓴᓇᙳᐊᖅᐸᒃᖢᓂ ᑎᑎᕋᖅᐸᒃᓗᓂᓗ ᒫᓐᓇ ᐋᑐᕚᒥᐅᑕᐅᔪᖅ, ᐋᓐᑎᐅᕆᐅᒥ. ᑕᖅᓴᕆᒃᑐᓂᒃ ᑎᑎᕋᐅᔭᖅᐸᒃᑐᖅ ᔭᕐᕋᓕᐅᖅᐸᒃᖢᓂᓗ ᐃᓚᒥ ᓴᓇᙳᐊᕈᓯᕆᕙᓚᐅᖅᑕᖏᓐᓂᒃ ᒪᓕᒃᖢᓂ. ᓴᓇᙳᐊᖅᑎᐅᔪᖅ ᓴᓇᙳᐊᒐᖃᕐᕕᖕᒥ ᒍᐊᓪᒥ ᓯᕗᓪᓕᖅᐹᕐᒥᓪᓗ ᓴᓇᐅᒐᕐᒥᓂᒃ ᓴᖅᑭᔮᖅᑎᑦᑎᓯᒪᓪᓗᓂ ᑕᐃᔭᕐᒥᒃ ᑲᔪᓯᐅᑎᓯᒪᔭᑦᑲᒥᒃ: ᑭᓱᑦ ᑲᔪᓯᑎᑕᒃᑲ, ᒪᑐᐃᓚᐅᖅᑐᖅ ᐄᑉᐳᕈ 2022-ᒥ.

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ᑭᒡᓗᒧᑦ

ᒦᒐᓐ ᖃᔮᖅ-ᒫᓐᑏᑦ — ᓂᕆᔭᒃᓴᑦ ᐅᓐᓄᐊᒃᑯᑦ 2020 ᐊᒥᐊᕈᑎᓄᑦ 60.9 × 60 cm ᐊᔾᔨᙳᐊᖅ ᒪᕆᐊᓐ ᓯᑳᑦ ᑕᑯᔭᒐᖃᕐᕕᖓᓐᓂᑦ © ᓴᓇᙳᐊᖅᑎ

ᖁᓛᓂ

ᒫᒃ ᐃᒡᓗᓕᐅᖅᑎ — ᖃᔭᙳᐊᖅ ᓵᑦᑐᔮᕐᒥ ᐊᒃᓴᓗᐊᕋᓛᓕᖕᒥ ᑭᐳ, ᐊᓯᐊᓂᒃ ᓴᓇᓯᒪᔪᖅ 2017 ᐊᕐᔭᐅᔭᓄᑦ ᑎᑎᕋᐅᔭᖅᓯᒪᔪᖅ 50.8 × 106.7 cm ᐊᔾᔨᙳᐊᖅ ᒍᐊᓪᒥ ᓴᓇᐅᒐᕐᓂᒃ ᑕᑯᔭᒐᖃᕐᕕᖕᒥᑦ © ᓴᓇᙳᐊᖅᑎ

In the Moment

temporal loop —

by Sue Carter

Music can transport you to another time and place, but it’s not often that someone reaches back into the past and turns the old into something new.

Soprano Deantha Edmunds has dedicated her career to using her bright voice and Labrador traditions to draw new audiences to the centuries-old sound of opera.

Inuit Art Quarterly

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Summer 2022

In April 1742, German composer George Frideric Handel premiered his choral masterpiece, Messiah,, to a modest audience gathered at a Dublin music hall. Tracing the life of Jesus Christ through passages from the Bible, the emotional range of the oratorio’s musical movements, from grief to exaltation, secured the composer’s reputation as a Baroque mega-star.

Following Handel’s death in 1759, several new arrangements of Messiah were produced for much larger orchestras and choirs— the bigger, the better was the trend of the day—though the more intimate original version is still performed today.

One of the most unique contemporary adaptations is Against the Grain Theatre’s 2020 streamed video performance, Messiah/ Complex,, featuring 12 soloists and four choirs, representing every province and territory across Canada, singing in Arabic, Dene, English, French, Inuktitut, Inuttitut and Southern Tutchone, accompanied by the Toronto Symphony Orchestra. The recorded digital album of the performance received a 2022 Juno Award nomination for Classical Album of the Year (Large Ensemble).

Co-directed by Inuvialuk, Cree and Dene writer and actor (and Inuit Art Foundation board member) Reneltta Arluk, the ambitious cross-country fi lm features performances by two Inuk singers, Looee Arreak from Panniqtuuq (Pangnirtung), NU, and soprano Deantha Edmunds, representing Newfoundland and Labrador.

Despite the fact that Messiah/Complex was created under strict COVID-19 restrictions, with a complex master plan for recording and videography to ensure participant safety, the final performance feels timeless.

In the video, Edmunds stands on the cliffs of Petty Harbour, a small fishing village just south of her home in St. John’s, NL. Rough Atlantic waves break over the craggy rocks, until the camera focuses on Edmunds, bathed in sunlight. She is wearing a grey amauti, the wind haloing the fur hood around her face. As Edmunds begins to sing the aria “Kuvianattuksovut Itigangit” (“How Beautiful are the Feet”) in Inuttitut, there is a smile on her face, an air of serene confidence about her. Her voice embodies the natural beauty of the landscape—there are close-ups of her walking in sealskin boots through the lichen, mirroring the song’s words—with an effortlessness that comes from natural talent supported by years of training.

“It’s a piece that I’ve always loved singing. I think it’s one of the most beautiful things ever written,”1 says Edmunds.

Although originally composed for Easter, Messiah is now a Christmas mainstay, as much a part of the season as Santa Claus.

It’s been a highlight of Western holiday repertoires, for both amateur and professional choirs, for centuries. Even those whose classical-music knowledge is limited to old Bugs Bunny cartoons are probably acquainted with the “Hallelujah” chorus.

After singing the aria in English for decades, Edmunds found that she had to adapt some of the familiar rhythms to accommodate the Inuttitut translation, “But it felt so good to breathe new life into it.”

Unikkaat/Unikkaaqtuat

PREVIOUS & OPPOSITE

Deantha Edmunds — Messiah/Complex (stills) 2020 Video 118 min COURTESY AGAINST THE GRAIN THEATRE PHOTO JUSTIN OAKLEY © THE ARTIST

ABOVE

Deantha Edmund’s handwritten lyrics for “Life’s a Song” © THE ARTIST

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temporal loop

ABOVE & BELOW

OPPOSITE (LEFT)

Deantha Edmunds in rehearsals for and performing Shanawdithit (2019) at Tapestry Opera

James Andersen — Brass Band at Nain Labrador 1971 Slide transparency

COURTESY TAPESTRY OPERA PHOTO DAHLIA KATZ

© THE NUNATSIAVUT GOVERNMENT, ANDERSEN COLLECTION, THE ROOMS

Inuit Art Quarterly

48

Summer 2022

“These pieces of music that have been passed down for generations are so special to me that it’s hard to put into words.”

ABOVE

Moravian sheet music COURTESY DEANTHA EDMUNDS

Every Christmas Eve, Albert would lead the family in traditional carols such as “Silent Night” and “Oh, Christmas Tree” in Inuttitut, German and English, which is how he learned them as a child. It’s a tradition Edmunds carries on with her own family.

“It’s something I’m proud to now be able to do in my own repertoire. And I’ve taught it to my daughter as well,” she says.

“These pieces of music that have been passed down for generations are so special to me that it’s hard to put into words.”

For years, Edmunds put most of her energy toward teaching, something which she still does and loves. But then she encountered the work of Dr. Tom Gordon, a professor emeritus of Musicology at Memorial University in St. John’s. Gordon has been extensively studying and preserving the tradition of Western music in coastal Labrador Inuit communities.

Edmunds learned about the Moravian missionaries, who, roughly 30 years after Messiah debuted, arrived in Labrador. The first Europeans to settle in the region—the last mission shut down in 2005—their influences on every aspect of Labradormiut life and culture continues to be monumental, including on local music.

In their zeal to colonize local Inuit, the sect of German-speaking Protestants taught Christian hymns and other sacred works by the likes of Mozart, Bach and Haydn. Over time, the two cultures’ languages and music began to form into its own unique entity: the Moravians brought organs, brass instruments, violins and other

As Inuit and other Indigenous artists work to decolonize their respective disciplines, classical music brings unique challenges.

It’s rare to hear Handel or Mozart out in the world in grocery stores or gyms, the same way you do pop music (though there are classical TikTokers who regularly get hundreds of thousands of likes). And it’s hard to break the prevailing attitude that classical music is elitist and for White audiences only, a belief that Edmunds is striving to change.

“We’re trying to decolonize the music world so that this music is not only accessible, but appreciated by people who live all over, not just in major cities or who move in prestigious circles,” says Edmunds. “I really want people of all walks of life and listeners of all different styles of music to check out the music that I’m doing, because it is something different.”

Chances are if you’ve seen Edmunds’ name, it’s appended with the title “Canada’s fi rst Inuk classical singer.” One might think that comes with internal pressure, or perhaps a sense of isolation, but it’s been a natural calling since she was 12 years old.

Born in Corner Brook, NL, into a musical family, Edmunds’ late father, Albert—an Inuk from Hopedale, Nunatsiavut, NL—was a professional civil engineer who played the guitar and could figure out any instrument placed in front of him. Edmunds and her siblings all took piano lessons, but ultimately she found her creative home singing.

Unikkaat/Unikkaaqtuat

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temporal loop

Inuit Art Quarterly

50

Summer 2022

Legacy Written in honour of Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women, Girls and 2-Spirit People.

You left us a legacy: hold on to your history, write a new plot, dance, drum, do not forget it’s never too late to rise and resonate!

Sister, I feel you walking with me.

I hear your voice on the breeze, and I know that you will always be more than a memory… alive, like the wind flying free.

Atsunaingilagut.

OPPOSITE

Deantha Edmunds PHOTO JENNIE WILLIAMS © THE ARTIST

Unikkaat/Unikkaaqtuat

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instruments to accompany the Inuit choirs who had mastered the complex choral arrangements and made them their own. In recent years, there has been a revival of Inuit community brass bands, which would call people to church and greet incoming ships.

“A lot of people think I studied classical music because of that unique music history from Labrador.

But that’s not what happened,” Edmunds says. “I studied classical music because that was a passion of mine and something I love to do. It was only later in my life that I realized the wealth of music in my ancestry.”

Gordon and Edmunds discussed the fact that most of this music had never been recorded; the result of which is the album, Pillorikput Inuit – Inuktitut Arias for All Seasons (2015), featuring 16 arias and duets performed

by Edmunds, Karrie Obed and the Innismara Vocal Ensemble, accompanied by the Suncor Energy String Quartet and Gordon on the organ.

“I’m so grateful to have the opportunity to be able to record some of that music,” says Edmunds, who believes that collaborating with Gordon put her on the path to sharing and performing within this musical tradition. “Singing Mozart, Handel and Haydn in Inuttitut really made me feel like there were parts of myself coming together that I didn’t realize weren’t connected before. I felt like I was coming home and this is the music I was made to sing.”

It was a major revelation that would change Edmunds’ life. When she was starting out in her career, after studying music at Acadia University in Wolfville, NS, and Concordia University in Montreal, QC, people would quiz her: “What is Inuit opera?” She would have to explain, “No, I happen to be Inuk and I am a classical singer.” The next question would inevitably be whether or not she was also a throat singer.

“I always felt like some people saw me as not enough of one thing, or too much of another.

I struggled with that in my younger years, because I felt like people wanted to put me in some type of box,” Edmunds says. “I think with age and experience and maturity, and this incredible music history from Nunatsiavut, and those beautiful musical gems that I get to share with audiences in Inuttitut—with all of that coming together, I really just decided, ‘Okay, this is who I am.’ I’m not going to worry about if it’s good enough to some people or what other people might think I should be doing, I’m just going to absolutely throw myself into doing what I love.”

This passion and commitment has guided Edmunds’ career and creative choices. In 2019, she performed in the world premieres of two Indigenous operas: Shanawdithit with Tapestry Opera/Opera on the Avalon, and the Cree and Sámi double-header, Two Odysseys: Pimootewin and Gállábártnit produced by Soundstreams, Signal Theatre and the Sámi National Theatre Beaivvá š, which won a Dora Award for Outstanding Ensemble Work.

“Telling Indigenous stories through opera in Indigenous languages felt so incredible, and so different than performing, say, one of Mozart’s famous operas that’s been around for centuries,” Edmunds says. “Not that I don’t love traditional classical opera. But doing these new works, telling Indigenous stories through our voices, wow, it felt really powerful.”

Another life-changing moment for Edmunds happened in October 2021, when she was selected to perform at the Frankfurt Book Fair, the world’s largest and oldest book trade exhibition, in front of Mary Simon

ABOVE

Deantha Edmunds performing at the 2021 Frankfurt Book Fair COURTESY GOVERNOR GENERAL OF CANADA OFFICE PHOTO SGT MATHIEU ST-AMOUR, RIDEAU HALL

BELOW

Deantha Edmunds performing at the 2020 Arctic Inspiration Prize ceremony COURTESY ARCTIC INSPIRATION PRIZE PHOTO JUSTIN TANG

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just months after Simon had been sworn in as the new Governor General of Canada, the first Inuk to hold the position.

“To be singing in Inuttitut and to see her right there in the audience, taking it in, it was so special,” Edmunds says. “There were people there from all over the world speaking lots of different languages, but knowing that she understood what I was singing, and to be able to share it on such a world stage, it was amazing.”

While the world is opening back up and Edmunds is able to travel more for performances, she has two very personal creative projects on the go. She is in the middle of recording her third album, Connections, her first with all-original compositions. The nine songs, performed in Inuttitut and English, were arranged for string quartet, and feature throat singing by Jennie Williams and Ashley Dicker, which will be woven between each track. The album was recorded with the Atlantic String Quartet, a professional chamber ensemble comprised of principal string players from the Newfoundland and Labrador Symphony Orchestra.

Writing original lyrics is another way in which Edmunds is transforming perceptions around classical music and opera, by drawing on contemporary concerns. She is particularly proud of “Legacy,” a song written to commemorate Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women, Girls and 2-Spirit People.

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“One of the things that I try to do through my work is have some purpose behind it,” she says. “Not just a pretty song, but to be able to bring about change in some way.”

Edmunds is also rethinking her response to those back when she was starting out, who asked her about “Inuit opera”—she has a new answer, now that she is writing one of her own. She’s just finished writing the libretto, and is ready to move into the translation and composition phase of Irngutaq (grandchild), which she hopes to premiere in the next few years.

Her dream for the production is to have representation from across Inuit Nunangat.

One scene she is planning will feature traditional drum dancers and throat singers.

“The typical audience that will go see a new opera might not encounter throat singing and drum dancing otherwise and see how magnificent and special it is,” says Edmunds.

“If I’m going to tell a story that has to do with unique people and culture, I want to show off the beauty of these traditions.”

NOTES 1

— Sue Carter is Deputy Editor at the Inuit Art Quarterly.

Previously she held the position of Editor-in-Chief at Quill & Quire, Canada’s book-publishing magazine.

She is a regular visual arts and books contributor to the Toronto Star and her award-winning journalism has appeared in many major international publications.

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All quotes Deantha Edmunds, Interview with Sue Carter (Deputy Editor), April 2022 ABOVE

Deantha Edmunds PHOTO JENNIE WILLIAMS © THE ARTIST

temporal loop

THEM

BACK IN

DAYS —

by Aimee Chaulk

How one small publication conserves a pocket of time in its preservation of Inuit stories, languages and culture from Labrador.

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In 2008 I walked into the Them Days office in Happy Valley-Goose Bay, NL, for the first time. It was a cold, dark winter’s night, my feet crunching on the snow and my heart beating. The building was small and nondescript, looking more like a little house with peachy-coloured vinyl siding than an office housing a cultural publication. It had a regular grey door like you’d see on any house, and inside, sparkly-eyed Susan Felsberg, who was Chair of the Board of Directors at the time, invited me into the dark porch vestibule. Its humbleness belied its stature in my mind.

For me, this was a big deal. A really big deal. A collection of Them Days magazines always sat in a prized location on a bookshelf at my house growing up, no matter where we moved. A copy of On The Goose, a Them Days special issue, was kept on my dad’s dresser along with Horace Goudie’s Trails to Remember. I used this oral history quarterly in my university courses, on papers that meant much to me. I am not an outlier. It is found in the homes of most other Labradorians too, at their cabins and often in the washrooms.

(It’s a claim I’m happy to share—that’s where the most frequently read publications are kept!) The magazine may be small, but it looms large in our imaginations.

When Them Days started, it was originally conceived as a one-time publication by the Labrador Heritage Society and the Old Timers League. One of the Old Timers, Isaac Rich, went around and interviewed his trapping buddies. It was thought their particular way of life was disappearing rapidly in the 30-plus years since the Second World War brought the outside world to Labrador in the form of Goose Bay, the world’s busiest airport and home to military bases operated by two foreign (Canadian and American) governments. Along with thousands of military personnel, the bases brought wage work for people. They brought American movies and music, and many women married military men and left. The change was immense.

So then in the 1970s, when it came time to put together the book that would encapsulate the days that were now mostly memories, they needed an editor. They hired Doris Saunders, CM, a plucky tomboy and mother of three whose embroideries were so perfect, a gallery once unknowingly displayed hers backwards. Doris had a gift for drawing stories out. She had been a keen listener since she was small and knew what to ask to whom.

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PREVIOUS (TOP)

ABOVE (LEFT)

Ella Blake, Doris Saunders and Flora Baikie, North West River, 1978.

Gillian Saunders, 1990.

PHOTO JUDY MCGRATH

Bertha Holeiter, Doris Saunders and Joshua Obed at Them Days, 1980.

PREVIOUS (BELOW)

Reading Them Days at the Craft Conference of Happy Valley, c. 1980.

PHOTO DORIS SAUNDERS

ABOVE (TOP RIGHT)

PHOTO JUDY MCGRATH

PHOTO DORIS SAUNDERS

ABOVE (BOTTOM RIGHT)

OPPOSITE

Susannah Igloliorte using a scraper, Happy Valley, 1977.

Doris Saunders, Happy Valley-Goose Bay, 1976.

PHOTO VAL HEARDER

PHOTO NIGEL MARKHAM

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The magazine had plenty of help from knowledgeable and capable volunteers and project workers—transplants like Nigel Markham, Bruce Bourque and later Judy McGrath— but they put an Inuk woman at the helm, and Doris learned the craft of publication as she went along. She did it all with limited resources—in the early days, Them Days had to borrow typewriters from other offices when they closed for lunch or for the evening, returning them the next day. Doris learned how to take photos and how to develop them in the darkroom. She even learned how to drive.

Doris had a can-do Labrador attitude, born of a life on the land, where if you needed something done, you had to do it yourself. This helped her get through her first publication and many more, though she hadn’t had any experience in the field before. Her resilience carried Them Days through tight financial times, when she went unpaid.

By the time the very first issue of Them Days was printed in August 1975, it was already declaring itself a quarterly magazine. The first working title for the publication had been Portage, but it soon became obvious that a different name was needed, one that encompassed more people than just the trappers who had inspired the idea. “Back in them days” was the most common phrase used by every person interviewed, and thus this nod to the Labrador English dialect became the title that stuck.

Them Days featured (and continues to feature) Labradorians of all backgrounds, but throughout the years, a majority of stories have been from Inuit. Inuit stories, language, art and craft are all featured. Susannah Igloliorte’s sealskin boots

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and inukuluk embroideries were highlighted in early issues, and in more recent years the generational legacy of doll-making

by Susan Pottle, Jane Shiwak and Inez Shiwak has been featured. A travelling exhibit of grasswork and a catalogue was produced in 1979 with the Art Gallery of Memorial University and Them Days facilitated a project on Inuit clothing displayed in our provincial museum in St. John’s a few years later. Them Days became a place in print to just be Inuit. People of mixed descent weren’t called derogatory terms or talked down to, or praised for evidence of their whiteness. Indigenous Peoples were neither exoticized nor derided. For once, our history and our lives weren’t filtered through an outsider’s gaze.

In these days of self-publishing and the Internet, where you can see yourself reflected and validated through social media, it’s easy to forget what it was like not to have any of that. Before Them Days and other Indigenous media started publishing and broadcasting, imagine what it was like to hold those early issues of Them Days in your hands, to open it and see pictures of people who looked like you, to read the kinds of words you used on the page. One of the beautiful things about Them Days is how the oral nature of our stories comes through the text. As you read it, you can hear the person telling their story.

Not only were stories recorded, transcribed and published in Inuttitut, some English stories were translated from English to Inuttitut, a recognition that the story exchange went more than one way—that Inuttitut was valued and respected.

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In 1984, an archive was established at Them Days’ office to preserve the body of research that had gone into nearly a decade of publication, including the audio tapes of Elders telling their truths, the donated documents and the thousands of photos copied and created in-house.

From the beginning, Doris and her daughter Gillian (who came on officially in 1987 as the office administrator with a keen eye for archival organization; her tiny, precise handwriting is found all over records in the archives) maintained the archive with an Indigenous mindset. The belittling captions often included with photos of days gone by were followed by in-house captions that contained correct wording. They identified people left nameless through the impersonal colonial lens.

In the cruelest of ironies, Doris, the woman who spent a lifetime gathering stories, publishing our history and building Labrador’s greatest memory institution, was struck by early-onset Alzheimer’s. She passed away in 2006, only a few days short of her 65th birthday and just a few years after the last issue of Them Days appeared with her name at the top of the masthead. I came back to Labrador in 2007 and started editing Them Days shortly thereafter. I never had a chance to meet her, but I sure wish I had. I’m reminded daily in the work around me and by

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our long-time readers of what a force she was and how she and Gillian and all the others built this small but mighty organization to be what it is today.

It is their spirit and drive that I strive for now that I am at the helm of the magazine and the archives. I work to continue the decolonization of records and to normalize and value Indigenous knowledge. I continue their work to put names to faces through our ongoing #IDThemDays project, to amplify the voices of Labradorians and to shine a light on histories otherwise forgotten.

Our board, which is mostly Inuit, is supportive and understanding of these issues. The definition of “them days” continues to evolve as time marches on, and I hope we continue to reflect on our past with the same enthusiasm and desire to see ourselves as we are.

— Aimee Chaulk is a writer, editor, archivist and photographer from Happy Valley-Goose Bay, NL. In addition to editing Them Days magazine since 2008, she has been published in SakKijâjuk: Art and Craft from Nunatsiavut. She is on the Executive of the Association of Newfoundland and Labrador Archives, and also freelances for the National Film Board. In her spare time, Chaulk enjoys sewing, embroidery and collecting aspirational craft supplies. She is learning to make slippers from her great-aunt Mary Ann.

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OPPOSITE

Doris Saunders, Happy Valley-Goose Bay. COURTESY THEM DAYS

ABOVE

An assortment of covers of Them Days magazine from 1975 to present.

COURTESY THEM DAYS

Back in Them Days

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Flower Blossoms This piece is in honour of my family.

Over the past few years, my mom and I have had lots of conversations about my grandma and all the things she used to do—being very craft-based— but never really getting the recognition she deserves for it. That is something I have seen and heard a lot, how women do crafts and it is never really seen as an art form. It’s not always regarded as something to cherish. In reality, these are pretty intense art forms that were never traditionally passed down to me.

I included the picture of my grandma making bread because it is something I associate with going home and visiting family. It’s also a form of craft and connects our family together, along with very distinct memories of Labrador.

I added the portrait of my mom with the car because whenever she talks about Labrador, these are the stories that I hear from her about her 20s and 30s.

The inukuluks are something we’ve been creating in our family for a while and something my mom enjoys making, they remind me of her. These figures also symbolize reclaiming something that I hope won’t become lost—there is a lot of talk about folks not making them anymore. The last image is of me, sewing these inukuluks, connecting our three generations.

Broadly, this piece speaks to Indigenous futurisms and my hopes for the younger generations—that we will be able to reclaim our traditions but in a new way and be able to live freely and thrive without constraints. That is why I added the flowers: they symbolize our blooming and flourishing as Flowers women.

— Currently based in San Jose, California, US, collage artist, video artist and zine creator Chantal Jung originally hails from Happy Valley-Goose Bay, NL. Jung first embarked on her artistic journey through an early discovery of collage art, which led to a series of collages in which she paired images of her friends alongside their favourite flowers. Flowers form a cornerstone of Jung’s artistic practice, a motif she considers to hold particular personal significance. Beyond her digital and analogue collage work, she is also an emerging video artist, with a music video credit to her name for singer-songwriter Black Belt Eagle Scout and the short stop-motion film Things You Know But Cannot Explain as part of the Bartow Project. As a zine creator, Jung is a member of the collective Indigenous Honeys who produce content as a collective and provide workshops in zine-making.

Chantal Jung — Flower Blossoms 2022 Digital Collage © THE ARTIST

TRIBUTE

Mosha Michael

by Mark David Turner

with tuberculosis at the age of three and spent considerable time at southern sanatoriums and hospitals as well as at a residential school in Churchill, Manitoba. When he returned to Iqaluit, NU, he lived with his grandfather. At the age of 12, Michael found himself in front of—and likely behind—a still camera when the British-born photojournalist Rosemary Gilliat Eaton took several portraits of him, along with his friends and family, in and around Iqaluit.

In 1974 he participated in a workshop on Super 8 filmmaking held in Iqaluit by the NFB where he would shoot and edit his first film, Natsik Hunting, which was released in 1975. With no synchronous sound—Etulu Etidloie (1946–2019) and Michael’s score make up the soundtrack—the film has the look and feel of a poetic, homemade travelogue. We can see Michael’s intimacy with the people, animals and landscapes he films, but the country-inspired

Mosha Michael (1948–2009) was a pioneer. Those familiar with his screen-based work understand his importance in the development of Inuit cinema, but his achievements as a filmmaker are difficult to separate from his work in a range of other art practices that are, today, less acknowledged. Writing on Michael’s trio of films produced by the National Film Board (NFB) in The Cinema of Canada, critic Jerry White commends them for their precision and intimacy—for the way in which Michael shows us his close relationship with his subjects.

That precision and intimacy is as much a result of his diverse practice as it is Michael himself. His producer at the NFB, Peter Raymont, told the CBC: “He just was a natural, you know? He had a gift. He had an eye. He had a sensitivity. He was very smart, very sharp.” 1 Michael was a filmmaker, storyteller, musician, sculptor and jewellery maker. Born on the land in Nunavut, he was diagnosed Inuit Art Quarterly

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TRIBUTE

score gives motion to his imagery. In the final credits for Natsik Hunting, as well as his 1977 films Asivaqtiin (The Hunters) and Qilaluganiatut (Whale Hunting), Michael expresses gratitude to the “members and staff” of Ikajurtauvik (the Baffin Correctional Centre). Opened in 1974 in Tasiujarjuaq, Michael explains the relevance of the facility in his narration for Asivaqtiin: the hunting and fishing he documents in the film—activities central to the approach at Ikajurtauvik—were made during his time as a member.

With no accessible catalogue of Michael’s work, it is difficult to know the full range of his output. While his NFB films appear to be the only ones he is credited with directing, in the following years he wrote scripts for and trained young videographers at the Inuit Broadcasting Corporation and worked as a camera operator on Edward Folger’s Kinngait-shot Nanook Taxi (1977). In the early 1980s, Michael moved south. During that transition, he worked as a camera and sound assistant on Stavros Stavrides and Barbara Stocking’s 1983 film, Qallunaani, which was shot in Puvirnituq, Nunavik, QC, Ottawa and Montreal. According to IAQ’s 2000 profile of Michael—one of the more comprehensive overviews of his career—in 1985 he moved to study photography at what is now Toronto Metropolitan University, only to discover his registration had been lost. Unable to return to Iqaluit, Michael pivoted to sculpting and jewellery making. His work in these arts, which was first featured at the Ontario Arts Council’s Guild Shop and gallery under the direction of Ann Tompkins, led to a career in the South that would span three more decades.

“With Mosha, what’s wonderful is the lack of obscurity,” says Tompkins of his Ontario output. “You find yourself relating to the message right away. It’s a feeling you get from his work.”2

OPPOSITE

Mosha Michael — Natsik Hunting (still) 1975 Super 8 film 7 min.

— Mark David Turner is a cultural historian and facilitator. He is the Manager of Audio-Visual Archives and Media Literacy for the OKâlaKatiget Society and Nunatsiavut Government and an Adjunct Professor at Memorial University’s School of Music.

COURTESY NATIONAL FILM BOARD OF CANADA © THE ARTIST

ABOVE

Mosha Michael holding Rosemary Gilliat’s camera, Iqaluit, 1960.

COURTESY ROSEMARY GILLIAT EATON / ROSEMARY GILLIAT EATON FONDS / LIBRARY AND ARCHIVES CANADA / E010868773 © THE ARTIST

BELOW

NOTES 1

“Inuk filmmaker mourned,” CBC Online, March 8, 2009, https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/toronto/inuk-filmmaker-mourned-1.860081.

2

Ann Tompkins, “Dealer’s Choice: Mosha Michael, Iqaluit, Nunavut Nominated

by Ann Tompkins of the Guild Shop, Toronto, Ontario,” Inuit Art Quarterly, Spring 2000: 38–44.

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Mosha Michael — Asivaqtiin (The Hunters) (stills) 1977 Super 8 film 13 min.

COURTESY NATIONAL FILM BOARD OF CANADA © THE ARTIST

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artist of the month of june Tivi Etok photo: Musée de la Civilisation

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Aisa Amittuk ᐊᐃᓴ ᐊᒥᑐ 1951 - 2021

A woman transforming into a bird

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NEWS

Updates and highlights from the world of Inuit art and culture

BOTTOM (LEFT)

BOTTOM (RIGHT)

Susan Aglukark

Installation view of Shuvinai Ashoona’s work at the Venice Biennale International Exhibition The Milk of Dreams, 2022

PHOTO DENISE GRANT

TOP

Still from Angakusajaujuq: The Shaman’s Apprentice, 2021 © IGLOOLIK ISUMA PRODUCTIONS

REPRODUCED WITH PERMISSION DORSET FINE ARTS PHOTO TAQRALIK PARTRIDGE © THE ARTIST

Three Inuit Singer-Songwriters Recognized by 2022 Juno Awards

David Ruben Piqtoukun Wins 2022 Governor General’s Award

Three Inuit musicians were celebrated at the 2022 Juno Awards, which recognizes the best of Canadian music. At this year’s opening-night ceremony in Toronto, ON, the three-time Juno Award-winner Susan Aglukark, OC, received the 2022 Humanitarian Award for her contributions to improving the lives of children and youth in northern communities.

Born in Churchill, MB, and raised in Arviat, NU, Aglukark is the first Inuk musician to have a Canadian top-10 commercial hit in Canada with her song “O Siem” off her 1995 album, This Child.

In 2012 Aglukark launched the Arctic Rose Project, now expanded to the Arctic Rose Foundation, which provides after-school arts and mentorship programs to Inuit and other Indigenous students across Nunavut.

“It is an honour to receive this award, and a privilege to have had the opportunity to help create safe spaces for Northern Inuit and [other] Indigenous youth to explore their own potential and forge cultural connections through Indigenous-led programs,” said Aglukark in a statement on the Juno Awards website.

Fellow Inuk artists Looee Arreak and Deantha Edmunds are also up for a Juno this year for their performances in Against the Grain Theatre and the Toronto Symphony Orchestra’s operatic production of Messiah/ Complex, in the running for Classical Album of the Year (Large Ensemble).

On March 1, David Ruben Piqtoukun received the Governor General’s Award in Visual and Media Arts Artistic Achievement by the Canada Council for the Arts. He was nominated for the award by the President of the Sculptors Society of Canada, Judi Michelle Young.

“He is a leader, with progressive innovations of contemporary works,” said Young in a press release. “In exploring the human condition, Piqtoukun’s work speaks of and to people’s resilience. Through his work, he inspires, mentoring the younger generation with poignant narratives.”

Piqtoukun, who is from Paulatuk, Inuvialuit Settlement Region, NT, is well known for his sculptures and printmaking, which he uses to explore Inuit legends and mythology. “I collect the stories from [my] childhood. We used our imagination when we heard the stories, and for me I was fascinated,” he says about his work in a video portrait by Bawaadan Collective.

Piqtoukun’s first solo exhibition was in 1973, with many solo and group exhibitions in the years since. He has been featured in many previous issues of the IAQ, gracing the cover on numerous occasions. He also served as a board member for the Inuit Art Foundation from 2011–14.

Two Canadian Screen Awards Go to Inuit Shorts in 2022 In ceremonies between April 4 and 10, the Academy of Canadian Cinema and Television announced that the Canadian Screen Awards for Best Short Documentary and Best Animated Short would go to Inuit filmmakers: Jennie Williams for Nalujuk Night (2021), and Zacharias Kunuk, OC, ONu, for Angakusajaujuq: The Shaman’s Apprentice (2021).

The 13-minute documentary Nalujuk Night is the first film from Williams, and chronicles the fun and frightening Nunatsiavut tradition of the same name, where people dressed as terrifying creatures come in off the ice.

“I am feeling very overjoyed to have won,” said Williams after the ceremony.

“The whole experience has been absolutely amazing and I am so happy to be able to share this very unique Labrador Inuit tradition with the world.”

Written and directed by Kunuk, Angakusajaujuq is a 21-minute stop-motion animation featuring a largely Inuit cast and production. The story follows a young shaman who goes on her first test to learn why a community member has fallen ill.

“I want to thank all the talented people [I] worked with,” said Kunuk in his acceptance speech. “Trying to work with the stop-motion department down in Toronto all the way from Iglulik was quite challenging and fun…you guys made it happen, and it worked. Qujannamiik.”

Want More Inuit Art News?

Read the IAQ coverage on Inuit and circumpolar Indigenous artists at the 2022 Venice Biennale

Get all the news, faster at: inuitartfoundation.org/news Inuit Art Quarterly

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LAST LOOK

Henry Napartuk Animal Composition

Calling to mind stories of creation, destruction and transformation, Henry Napartuk’s (1932–85) Animal Composition (1978) transports the viewer into a world of reflection and imagination. Reminiscent of world-altering events such as floods and waves of change described on totem poles and in oral histories, this piece evokes the feeling of movement, pulling our attention in multiple directions as the artist combines different animal forms into one metamorphic creature.

A celebrated sculptor and printmaker from Kuujjuaraapik, Nunavik, QC, Napartuk developed his creative skills with mentorship and inspiration from family and friends: his father Josie Napartuk (1901–80), a well-known Kuujjuaraapik carver, and printmakers Noah and Lucy Meeko. Their influence can be seen in Napartuk’s earlier works, but eventually a distinct style set Napartuk apart from other Nunavik artists. With a penchant for the abstract and fantastic, Napartuk’s work is known for its imaginative combinations of human and animal forms, often morphed together.

As a whole, this composition is wider than it is high, its curve creating a boat-like shape that conjures a calming, rhythmic sensation. The lighter tone of the two large, delicately etched eyes on either side pop against cool, dark grey stone. Smooth lines and gentle curves balance the weight and asymmetry of the piece, creating a gentle transition between the figures and establishing unity. Tracing the disparate parts, we see a whale (holding a seal in its mouth) and a bear reaching in opposite directions, an abstract face to one side and a goose sitting beneath, anchoring the lot.

By combining various figures in this way, Napartuk’s assemblage animates local relationships with land and nature and reflects historical and traditional knowledge. Filled with life and character, this chimera is more than the sum of its parts.

Henry Napartuk — Animal Composition 1978 Stone 10.2 × 21 × 7.6 cm COURTESY WADDINGTON’S AUCTIONEERS AND APPRAISERS, TORONTO © THE ARTIST

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A North American Art Collection amplifying diverse voices and creating conversations.

Image Credit: Jason Baerg (Métis-Cree), Ispisîhêw ᐃᐢᐱᓰᐦᐁᐤ S/He Raises (4), 2021, Acrylic on wood, 60” x 48”, TD Bank Corporate Art Collection.

Learn more at td.com/art.

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