Kananginak Pootoogook, Umingmuk, 1973, stonecut. Gift of John Robertson, 1985 (28-117).
Exhibitions
Impressions North / Mid-20th Century Inuit Prints
African Gallery
31 July - 9 July 2006
In 1957, the Cape Dorset print shop was founded and printmaking was born as an artistic practice among the Inuit in the Canadian arctic. The impetus had come several years earlier from James Houston, the administrator of West Baffin, who distributed art supplies to interested Inuit and purchased the resulting drawings. He introduced printmaking techniques and assisted in the formation of Inuit co-operatives to market their artwork. At Cape Dorset, Baker Lake and other communities, drawings were selected annually for translation into editioned prints for sale to enthusiastic collectors in the south, and badly-needed income was thus provided to these northern communities. Printmaking continues to be practiced today with international success.
Initially, Inuit artists were encouraged to depict the "Old Ways" of traditional life on the land. This appealed to southern collectors but also provided the artists with a means to record and pass on knowledge to younger generations of Inuit.
Impressions/North and Impressions/South are linked exhibitions that present work from two regions of Canada where printmaking flourished in the mid-20th century. Although the work is very different, there is common ground to be explored.
This exhibition is dedicated to the memory of James Houston (1921-2005).
Dorothy Farr
Supported by the George Taylor Richardson Memorial Fund