Inuit art: Hunter
Inuit Artist: Wayne Puqiqnak
Size: 9" high, 8" wide, 6" deep
Community: Gjoa Haven, NU 20
Material: Serpentinite & Caribou Antler
id: c-055
This is a timeless piece by Wayne Puqiqnak who is an artist from the very remote hamlet of Gjoa Haven.
Gjoa Haven is known for its connection to the ill-fated Franklin Expedition.
This was a 1845 British voyage of Arctic exploration which ended in starvation and death when the two ships became stranded in the frozen Arctic ocean near the community of Gjoa Haven.
The Kitikmeot region is renowned for its grotesque style.
Grotesque does NOT mean ugly or repulsive!
In architecture and decorative art, fanciful sculptural decoration involving humans, animals or plants is described as Grotesque. The word comes from the Italian grotteschi, referring to the grottoes in which these decorations were found.
Our Grotesque has his head flexed back so far it almost touches his back. It's as if he was startled by something high in the sky. Like a UFO? A shooting star?
The large inlaid eyes are the focus of this quirky creature.
This style of eye is typical of the Gjoa Haven sculptures.
They are set high on the forehead and spaced widely apart.
Chase is intriguing with a magnetic personality that is hard to resist.
See our notes on The Gjoa Haven Collection.
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