Timelines

5000 - 1000 BCE

First great migration from Siberia to Alaska across the Bering Strait. Beginnings of sporadic presence in the Canadian Arctic.

Circa 1000 BCE - Circa 1000 CE

The Dorset Culture. The Dorsets left behind small figurative sculptures of stone and ivory with magical or religious significance, closely linked to shamanic rituals.

Circa 1000 CE - 1700-1800

Thule Culture. This last migration signalled the decline of the Dorset culture. Thule people were pragmatic hunters, mostly of whales and other marine mammals, and with their material progress (more effectice hunting and survival techniques) they overran their predecessors. They also developed a more elegant and decorative art by incising stylized patterns on their implements, imbuing them with occult powers.

1576

Earliest European expeditions to the Arctic in search of the Northwest Passage and the spices of China. Contacts with Inuit were very rare.

1771

Arrival of the Moravian Brothers, a Protestant denomination from Germany, who established the first mission...

Themes

THEMES AND STYLES 

Major themes found in Inuit Art include arctic wildlife (birds, bears and other land and sea animals) and traditional Inuit hunting and family scenes, spirit figures, face clusters, mythological and shamanic images among others. The theme of Arctic wildlife and traditional Inuit hunting and family scenes are still popular, but spirit figures and mythological and shamanic images abound.

Styles range from naturalism or decorative stylization to minimal abstraction, and from gaunt expressionism to whimsical surrealism. At first glance, Inuit sculpture may seem to be a relatively homogenous art form, but in fact, its subject matter and style are richly varied. The Inuit population (about 35,000) is widely distributed across Canada's north, so that each of the 30 or so art producing communities has developed its own favourite subject and distinct style. The personal styles of individual artists are often readily identifiable by those who take the time to look...

Regional Artistic Expression

With the exception of Baker Lake, the major Inuit sculpture producing settlements, mostly ranging in population from a few hundreds to 2,000 people, dot the Arctic coastline. While each community has its own style, certain regional characteristics are apparent.

The sculpture of Arctic Quebec (Nouveau-Quebec; Nunavik) tends to be naturalistic, and is often narrative in nature. Animals and realistic hunting scenes, as well as legends and stories, are favoured subjects. The predominantly grey stones are generally blackened and polished, then incised.

Artists from southern Baffin Island work in a variety of stone types. These sculptors seem to view the stone as a challenge, working against it and fashioning intricate, delicate and dramatic pieces with flair. Elegant or humorous animals are popular subjects.

Naturalistic animal and hunting scenes predominate in the art from northern Baffin Island, the Western Arctic and Labrador.

The sculpture of the Central Arctic varies from a kind of expressive realism...

Contemporary

The contemporary period of Inuit art began in the late 1940s. When federal government recognized the potential economic benefit to the Inuit after World War II, it actively encouraged (with the assistance of the Hudson's Bay Company and the Canadian Handicrafts Guild) the development and promotion of Inuit sculpture. In response to Canadian government initiatives and for material advantages, the Inuit abandoned their nomadic lifestyle and moved into communities across the Arctic.

Inuit-owned cooperatives were established in the 1950's and 1960's in most Arctic communities, as well as art marketing agencies in southern Canada. As well as providing much needed income in isolated Arctic villages, Inuit sculpture has achieved an international reputation as a major contemporary art form. Art and crafts programs were encouraged and artists within the communities were thus accorded a greater opportunity to pursue artistic expression. This expression continued to draw upon singular extraordinary manual strength and dexterity, and their...

The great masters

The great masters