Name/Title
Untitled (tent)Entry/Object ID
2019.03.02Description
Mary Ayaq Anowtalik (b.1938) is an Ahiarmiut Inuit artist from near Ennadai Lake, Nunavut (formerly Northwest Territories). Anowtalik is known for her abstract and figurative stone sculptures and drawings, many of which focus on intimate family and community relationships. Her mother, Elizabeth Nutaraluk Aulatjut (1914-1999), and her late husband, Luke Anowtalik (1932-2006) were also sculptors and artists. Anowtalik and her husband would often collaborate and complete each other's works.
Growing up, Anowtalik remembers living a peaceful nomadic life surviving off the land and being supported by the knowledge of the elders until the arrival of planes and police. In 1957, a young Anowtalik and her family were forcefully relocated south to the community of Arviat during one of a series of actions taken by the Canadian government in the 1950s. Their tents were bulldozed, and their belongings were left behind. Once in Arivat, the displaced Ahiarmiut communities faced famine. Anowtalik's mother supported the family by trading and selling her art for food and supplies.
Untitled (2005) memorializes the form of the tent using bright colours and vibrant contrast. The imagery draws from the artist's life emphasizing the resilience of a community and traditions that were displaced.
Her works are included in the collections of the Winnipeg Art Gallery, the Musée national des beaux-arts du Québec, and the University of British Columbia Museum of Anthropology.Artwork Details
Medium
coloured pencil on paperMade/Created
Artist
Anowtalik, Mary AyaqDate made
2005Dimensions
Height
30.5 cmWidth
30.5 cm