Indigenous Canadian Art.

The Indigenous people of Canada are split in two, the Inuits who mostly live in Nunawut, the north-east part of Canada, and the First Nations who are spread all across of Canada. The Aboriginal people of Canada could not be more various, but that is exactly what identifies Canada and they help to shape the multicultural society that Canada is today. When it comes to art the indigenous people of Canada have been crafting and producing their art long before the European settlers came to Canada however when they came, despite their disagreement, the aboriginal art became a very popular trade product.

Characteristics of Inuit art is sudden and deliberate implantation, said Rudolf Arnheim, meaning that it’s pretty simple and has obvious and clear intentions. And most people must agree, they are mostly known for their sculptures and prints today, but they have also been good with decorating utensils, making adornments and more. Most Inuit sculpture artist today prefer to use an axe or a file than the power tools that are available. This both gives them more control over the stone and for some keeps them closer to their ancestry, for that is what their fathers did before them, sculptures entirely by hand. After the carving process comes many many hours of polishing the stone with waterproof sandpaper.

In the 1950s, Jim Houston made the first Inuit owned art co-operative. This gave the Inuit artists for the first time a chance to produce and market their products. Houston also introduced the Inuits to Japanese printmaking. One of the artist who used this opportunity was Pitseolak Ashoona(1904 or 1907-1983) , she is what one could call a canonized Inuit artist. Pitseolak began in making garments but quickly started producing graphic art on paper, Houston noticed her talents and encouraged her to produce more art by buying some of her work.

"I draw the things I have never seen, the monsters and spirits, and I draw the old ways, the things we did long ago before there were many white men."                     -Pitseolak.

Sometimes her work is filled with mythical strange beings stretching across the canvas in other images she simply places a tent and people discussing over dinner. What identifies her art is the life that her image seems often to be joyful or humorous. She has a strong sense for colors and balance. She often tries to capture “the old ways” of Inuits into her images.

Ashoona, Pitseolak. Pictures out of my life. Montreal : Design Collaborative Books, 1971.

Other Famous Inuit artists:  Joe Talirunili, Gilbert Hay and one of my personal favorites the wonderful Kenojuak Ashevak. She is an 84 year old graphic artist and sculptor, she makes these wonderful prints mostly of birds in primary colors or black on white background.

Fun facts from IAQ(magazine entirely based on Inuit art):

·         Inuit art represents approximately 10-15& of Canadian art, in spite of the fact that Inuit are only 2% of the Canadian population.

·         Canadian Inuit art is an icon for indigenous art all over the world.

Visual, First Nations, art is often connected with other kinds of art such as masks and rattles that are used for dancing in ceremonial or storytelling purpose. They often say that their Native culture can only be expressed through their art. When the Aboriginal art of Canada gained acceptance the First Nations formed a unique style called woodland or Anishinabe. The style emphasizes often on x-ray views of all kinds of beings such as animals, mythical creatures and plants, and the colors who are insanely bright and vivid.

Noval Morrisseau (14.3.1932 – 4.12.2007), often referred as Picasso of the North or father of Woodland School, is an amazing painter known for his thunderbird art. His paintings are characterized with strong, bright colors and thick black outlines.

Carl Ray (1943–1978) is another great woodland style artist. 

Berglind Hreiðarsdóttir 
2.H




References:  

http://www.eskimoart.com/history.html.  Canadian Inuit Sculpture, Indian & Northern Affairs Canada publication ISBN: 0-662-59936-5; Ingo Hessel, Inuit Art; An Introduction, Douglas & McIntire, 1988.

http://www.canadianstudies.ca/NewJapan/inuitartists.html

http://www.inuitart.org/magazine/

http://www.dennosmuseum.org/collections/woodland/index.html