ᐱᒋᐊᖅᑐᒥᓃᑦ 1959−ᒥ, ᑭᙵᐃᑦ ᑯᐊᐸᒃᑯᖏᑦ (WBEC) ᑭᙵᕐᓂ (Cape Dorset) ᓯᕗᓪᓕᖅᐸᐅᓯᒪᔪᑦ ᐱᓯᒪᑦᓱᑎᒃ ᐃᓄᐃᑦ ᓄᓇᖓᓐᓂᒃ (ᐃᓄᐃᑦ ᓄᓇᖏᑦ), ᑕᑯᓐᓈᖅᑕᐅᓯᒪᑦᓱᑎᒃ ᐊᑑᑎᓕᓐᓂᒃ ᐊᑐᐃᓐᓇᐅᑎᑦᓯᒍᑕᐅᒍᓐᓇᕆᐊᖏᑦ ᐱᔭᕆᐊᓕᓐᓂᒃ ᐱᔨᑦᓯᕋᐅᑎᓂᓪᓗ ᐅᑭᐅᖅᑕᖅᑐᒥ ᓄᓇᓕᓕᓐᓄᑦ. ᑯᐊᐸᒃᑯᑦ ᐱᒋᐊᕐᕕᐅᓯᒪᒻᒥᔪᑦ ᑭᙵᕐᓂ ᑎᑎᖅᑐᒐᕐᕕᓐᓄᑦ. ᒫᓐᓇ ᐃᖏᕐᕋᓯᒪᓕᖅᑐᑦ ᐊᕐᕌᒍᓄᑦ 65−ᓄᑦ, ᑎᑎᖅᑐᒐᕐᕕᒃ ᐊᒥᓱᐊᓗᓐᓄᑦ ᖃᓐᓇᓚᖏᓐᓃᑦᑐᓄᑦ ᑎᑎᖅᑐᒐᕐᕕᐅᓯᒪᔪᖅ ᐊᒻᒪᓗ ᒫᓐᓇᒧᑦ 2,400 ᐅᖓᑖᓃᑦᑐᓂᒃ ᑎᑎᖅᑐᒐᓕᐅᕐᕕᐅᓯᒪᔪᖅ ᓇᓪᓕᐅᓂᖅᓯᐅᕈᑕᐅᕙᑦᑐᓂᒃ ᓄᓇᕐᔪᐊᓕᒫᒥ.

1990−ᒥ, ᐅᖓᑖᓃᑦᑐᑦ 90,000 ᑎᑎᖅᑐᒐᒋᐊᙵᐃᑦ ᓴᓇᔭᐅᓯᒪᔪᑦ ᑎᑎᖅᑐᒐᓕᐅᕐᕕᒻᒥ ᐊᐅᓪᓚᖅᑎᑕᐅᓯᒪᔪᑦ ᒪᒃᒪᐃᑯᓪ ᑲᓇᐃᑎᐊᓐ ᓴᓇᐅᒐᕐᓂᒃ ᓄᐊᑦᓯᔨᓄᑦ, ᐸᐸᑕᐅᓯᒪᙱᓐᓇᖅᓱᑎᒃ ᒫᓐᓇᒧᓄᑦ ᑭᒡᒐᖅᑐᖅᑕᐅᑦᓱᑎᒃ ᑯᐊᐸᒃᑯᖏᑦ ᑭᙵᐃᑦ. ᐱᔭᕇᓕᖅᑐᖅ ᖃᕆᑕᐅᔭᒃᑯᑦ ᐊᔾᔨᓕᐅᖅᑕᐅᓯᒪᓂᖏᑦ ᐃᑦᓴᕐᓂᑕᕐᓅᖓᔪᓂ 2023−ᒥ ᐱᕕᖃᖅᑎᑦᓯᓯᒪᔪᖅ ᐅᖓᑕᐅᔾᔨᔭᐅᓯᒪᙱᑦᑐᓂᒃ ᖃᐅᔨᓴᕐᓂᐅᔪᓂᒃ ᑕᑯᒐᔭᖃᕐᕕᓐᓄᓪᓗ ᐊᑐᐃᓐᓇᐅᓯᒪᑦᓱᑎᒃ, ᓄᑖᓂᒃ ᑕᑯᒍᑕᐅᕙᓪᓕᐊᑦᓱᑎᒃ ᑎᑎᖅᑐᒐᐃᑦ ᑎᑎᖅᑐᒐᓕᐊᖑᓂᖏᑦᑕ ᐊᐅᓚᓂᖏᓐᓂᒃ, ᑭᓯᐊᓂᑦᑕᐅᖅ ᐃᒻᒥᒃᑯᑦ ᓴᓇᐅᒐᕐᓅᖓᒻᒥᔪᑦ. ᐊᒻᒪᓗ, ᑎᑎᖅᑐᒐᐃᑦ ᑕᑯᒍᑎᒋᒍᓐᓇᕋᑦᑎᒍ ᐃᓄᐃᑦ ᐃᓅᓯᖏᓐᓂᒃ ᑭᙵᕐᓂ ᐊᑦᑐᖅᑕᐅᓯᒪᒐᑎᒃ ᑕᑯᓐᓇᕐᓂᖏᓐᓄᑦ ᑎᑭᕌᖑᔪᑦ ᐊᐅᓚᑦᓯᔩᑦ ᓂᕈᐊᖅᓯᒪᔪᑦ ᑎᑎᖅᑐᒐᕐᓂᒃ ᑎᑎᖅᑐᒐᓕᐊᖑᒐᔭᖅᑐᓂᒃ ᖃᓪᓗᓈᑦ ᓄᓇᖓᓐᓂ.

ᐃᓚᐃᓐᓇᖏᑦ ᑎᑎᖅᑐᒐᐃᑦ ᐃᑦᓴᕐᓂᑕᕐᓃᑦᑐᑦ ᑎᑎᖅᑐᒐᓕᐊᖑᓯᒪᔪᑦ, ᐊᒥᓲᓂᖅᓴᐃᑦ ᑐᖅᑯᖅᑕᐅᓯᒪᑐᐃᓐᓇᖅᑐᑦ, ᐊᒥᓱᐊᓗᖏᑦ ᑕᑯᒍᔭᐅᓯᒪᒐᑎᒃ ᑕᒪᓐᓇᐅᓕᓚᐅᖅᑎᓐᓇᒍ. ᑎᑎᖅᑑᑎᑐᐃᓐᓇᕐᓄᑦ ᑎᑎᖅᑐᒐᐃᑦ ᐊᒻᒪᓗ ᐆᒻᒪᕆᑦᑐᑦ ᐊᒥᐊᖅᓯᒪᔪᑦ ᑎᑎᖅᑐᒐᐃᑦ ᐅᓪᓗᒥᒨᖓᓕᖅᑐᑦ, ᑎᑎᖅᑐᒐᖅᑎᖏᑦ ᑭᙵᐃᑦ ᑕᑯᑦᓴᐅᑎᑦᓯᓯᒪᔪᑦ ᖃᓄᐃᑦᑐᑐᐃᓐᓇᕐᓂᒃ ᓄᓇᕐᔪᐊᕐᒥᓂᒃ ᐸᐃᑉᐹᕐᒨᑦᓱᒋᑦ ᐊᕐᕌᒍᕋᓴᓐᓂᒃ, ᑕᑯᑎᑦᓯᒍᑕᐅᑦᓱᑎᒃ ᐆᒻᒪᕆᑦᑐᓂᒃ ᓄᓇᓕᓐᓂᒃ ᐱᖅᑯᓯᖅ

The recent digitization of the Kinngait Drawings Archive—90,000 works strong and held by the McMichael for more than three decades—has allowed unprecedented curatorial access to the origins of this now world-renowned graphic tradition.

Curated by Emily Laurent Henderson, Associate Curator, Indigenous Arts and Culture at McMichael, this once-in-a-generation exhibition of more than 200 works foregrounds the cultural continuities of life in Kinngait in the face of dramatic societal change over more than five decades. The adaptability and resilience of this unique community has been documented in works that depict intergenerational knowledge transfer, community building, and boundless imagination.

This exhibition reveals overlooked bodies of work by some of the country’s most beloved artists including Kenojuak Ashevak, Pitseolak Ashoona, Kananginak Pootoogook, and Pudlo Pudlat and introduces audiences to hitherto unknown artists whose work was suppressed by the aims of the print program that prioritized the tastes of settler markets in the South.