Purple Octopus, 2024
Stonecut and hand-colored, 34/50
Private collection
Both dogs and monsters are important in Inuit culture. Dogs were (and continue to be) practical companions for the Inuit and are present in every village and town, as well as working “in the bush.” Dogs assist with transportation, help with hunting, and keep guard. Inuit monsters of myth and legend also serve a purpose, warning of the dangers of life in the Arctic and reinforcing cultural norms. For example, the threat of shapeshifters and sea monsters warns children not to get too close to the water’s edge.
In a way, my dogs are like monsters who live with me. They are mysterious and somewhat unknowable yet present in my daily life where they provide companionship rather than practical skills.
The prints in this exhibition have been collected over several years, and the two themes have grown in the collection in a wonderfully haphazard way. The majority were created in Kinngait Studio (Kinngait, Nunavut), Canada’s longest continuously running printmaking studio, operating since 1959.
-Carole Mathey, Assistant Gallery Director
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