Angakkuq: Between Two Worlds Spiritual and Mythological Figures in Inuit and Inuvialuit Art

Angakkuq: Between Two Worlds; Spiritual and Mythological Figures in Inuit and Inuvialuit Art features five decades of Inuit artworks, produced by over fifty artists from twenty-two Northern communities across the Canadian Arctic. Surveying works from 1960 to 2009, the exhibition highlights the use of traditional Inuit imagery in a variety of media including stone and antler carving, whalebone sculpture, prints and drawings, as well as select ceramic and textile works. 

Consisting of works produced in the period following the Canadian federal government’s initiatives to introduce carving (late 1940s) and printmaking (1950s) as new industries in the North, Angakkuq: Between Two Worlds explores the persistence of mythological and spiritual figures in Inuit imagery. Whether as a reaction to market demand, or as a means of retaining connections to waning systems of belief, images of angakkuq—the shaman and mediator between physical and spirit worlds—and its spirit figures prevail. Sea women, drum dancers, and scenes of shaman transformations provide insight into the way northern stories are shared and circulated.

This selection of works is guest curated by Bill and Michelle Tracy, members of Edmonton’s Inuit Art Enthusiasts, a group of collectors who have generously leant the works in this exhibition.