National Indigenous Peoples Day | 2019

ART

6 | NATIONAL INDIGENOUS PEOPLES DAY FRIDAY, JUNE 21

WAG’s Inuit Art Centre Groundbreaking Ceremony on May 25, 2018. Photo courtesy of Pauline Boldt/26 Projects.

Inuit inspiration BY JENNIFER MCFEE INUIT ART OFFERS INSPIRATION THAT RESONATES WITH THE POWERFUL PRESENCE OF THE NORTH.

T hird-generation Inuit artist Goota Ashoona hails from Cape Dorset and now calls Elie home. Art runs in her blood, with her parents and grandmother earning international recognition for their carving and printmaking. As she grew up, Ashoona was immersed in her family’s artistic environment. She tried her hand at traditional sewing of sealskin and caribou hides with her relatives, but she soon learned that her talents bloomed elsewhere. “I tried my best to learn how to do what they used to do, so I watched them working on mitts or pants or boots. It’s really, really hard. That’s why I’m really proud of some young people who try it and don’t quit,” she said. “For me, I stick with carving. I started with stone as a little girl. I learned by using the leftover materials from my father’s carvings.”

Across the country and beyond, Ashoona has earned accolades for her soapstone and whalebone sculptures, as well as for her caribou antler and ivory jewelry. Two of her works are featured in the Winnipeg Art Gallery’s permanent collection. Through her artwork, Ashoona aspires to share some splendour in an effort to help people going through a hard time. “It’s important to show the beauty in things. If it helps people to see that, maybe it can inspire them or give motivation,” she said. “Every day when you try to see, you can notice that things are always changing, like the land and the weather and the skies and the animals. Everything’s moving out there — and it’s so beautiful every day when we try to see it.”

HAPPY NATIONAL ABORIGINAL DAY!

CREATIVELY INSPIRING INDIGENOUS COMMUNITIES

MANITOBA CONSTRUCTION SECTOR COUNCIL

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