Additional Images

Provenance:

Acquired by the first woman on the board of the Hudson’s Bay Company,
By descent to present owner.

This finely sculpted, classic period work could be the handiwork of Kiawak Ashoona or his brother Kaka. However, the beauty of this sculpture is emblematic of any of the master carvers from that era.

For similar works see Darlene Coward Wight, Early Masters, Inuit Sculpture, 1949-1955, The Winnipeg Art Gallery, Winnipeg, MB, pgs. 142-144

This work brings to mind a quote from Jean Blodgett’s Selections from the John and Mary Robertson Collection of Inuit Sculpture, 1986. In it, John wrote, “In visual arts the created object should speak for itself. It stands or hangs before us, wordless. Its language is its form, its texture, its evocation, its power, its sensuality. Valid art reflects the temperament, the background and the experience of the artist. The Inuit artist offers no explanations; he has no theories of art; he has eyes to see and assumes that we too have eyes to see.”

For information on Inuit art during the classic period see, Patricia Feheley’s three part series State of the Art, Inuit Art Quarterly, Fall 2014.