Although the Inuit have lived in the Artic since prehistoric times, Inuit art as we know it only came about in the late 1940s. This contemporary art form is appreciated around the world for its power and exquisite beauty, an art that embodies the Inuit's harsh artic environment, unique way of life, and traditional beliefs. This historical, cultural, and aesthetic exploration of Inuit art features examples of Inuit drawings, prints, textiles, and sculpture through 125 color photos, 35 black-and-white photos, and maps.
Some fifty years ago, the remote Arctic community of Cape Dorset was introduced to the ancient traditions of Japanese printmaking by a Canadian artist, James Houston, who had studied printmaking in Japan with the revered master printmaker Un'ichi Hiratsuka. The remarkable story of that artistic encounter and its extraordinary results are the focus of this groundbreaking book. With two major essays and detailed captions, it features 49 exquisite and rare artworks (including Inuit prints from 1947 to 1963 and Japanese prints that were brought to Cape Dorset in 1959, as well as never-before-seen works by James Houston), and shows how Cape Dorset graphic artists selectively borrowed and actively transformed Japanese influences. It includes the voice of Cape Dorset printmaker Kananginak Pootoogook, as well as previously unplished historic photographs from Japan and Cape Dorset.
This coloring book features 22 pictures by 10 different Inuit artists from Cape Dorset. Color reproductions of the original art lines the insides of the front and back covers.
Inuit--sometimes referred to as Eskimo--art is the primary art form of Canada and has a large international following, particularly in the United States, Japan, and Germany. Despite its popularity, the complete history of Inuit art has never been presented. This is the first chronological synthesis of Inuit art, following its development from prehistory, through early American and European exploration, to the recognition of Inuit art as a commercial possibility, and up to the present. There is a particular emphasis on contemporary art and artists, and the years 1950 through 1997 are each given separate, detailed treatment in regard to important shows and events. This history is appropriate both for the beginning admirer of Inuit art and for those already well immersed in it.
In the 1950s, Chauncey C. Nash started collecting Inuit carvings just as the art of printmaking was introduced in Kinngait (Cape Dorset). His collection of early Inuit sculpture and prints represents a vibrant period in contemporary Inuit art. Drawing from ethnology, archaeology, art history, and cultural studies, Lutz tells the collection’s story.
Lavishly illustrated with over a hundred color reproductions, this new paperback edition is an impressive photographic tribute to an art form that is regularly featured in major art exhibitions worldwide. Born out of economic necessity, Inuit art has captured the imagination of art lovers since 1948, when it was first exhibited. Celebrating Inuit Art showcases sculpture from the period when Canadian Inuit abandoned their nomadic lifestyle to settle in small villages across the Arctic. During this tumultuous time, in a society threatened with acculturation, art played a critical social role, preserving and expressing the culture's rich oral history."
Way up north, in the Canadian territory of Nunavut, Inuit artists at the Cape Dorset printmaking studios share their culture with the world through art. The Inuit treasure their language and stories, which often feature owls, loons, and other birds of the Arctic. This read-aloud board book presents rhyming couplets accompanying ten intriguing prints of owls and loons, brightly colored and full of fun.
Ningiukulu Teevee thinks in pictures, and drawing is her language. She is a soft-spoken storyteller, but her message is clear and strong, and with it she is expanding the narrative of the North, breaking new ground for Inuit art. Teevee hails from Cape Dorset, home to a multigenerational community of artists and the Kinngait Studios, the longest continually operating print studios in Canada. Her inventive images first appeared in the studios' annual collection of limited-edition prints in 2004 and have been represented every year since. Her work is rooted in respect for traditional Inuit culture and an abiding love of family, but along with artists such as Tim Pitsiulak and Annie Pootoogook, Teevee has proven unafraid of pushing artistic boundaries. In drawings alive with mischievous charm or weighted by a grittier reality, she often merges traditional Inuit art with contemporary aesthetics, revealing positive and negative changes to life in Arctic communities. In 2009, Teevee's illustrated children's book, Alego, was shortlisted for a Governor General's award. In 2017 Ningiukulu Teevee: Kinngait Stories, curated by the Winnipeg Art Gallery, opened at the Canadian Embassy in Washington, Dithe first major retrospective of Teevee's career to date. Ningiukulu Teevee: Drawings and Prints from Cape Dorset is the first monograph on the artist's work. Presented here are more than eighty reproductions and photographs, with critical context provided by Leslie Boyd, former director of Dorset Fine Arts, Toronto. Teevee's art has been exhibited widely and is in collections around the world, among them the Art Gallery of Ontario, the McMichael Canadian Art Collection, and the National Gallery of Canada.
