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i u a pi pu pa ti tu ta ki ku ka gi gu ga mi mu ma ni nu na si su sa li lu la ji ju ja vi vu va ri ru ra qi qu qa ngi ngu nga lhi lhu lha

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Joe Talirunili, ᔪᐅ ᑕᓚᕈᓂᓕ

Settlement: Povungnituk / Puvirnituq

(1893-1976) — E9-818

The date of Joe's birth is placed in 1893 or 1899 or 1906 near Kuujjuaraapik (Great Whale River).

Common themes in Joe's works included hunting trips and migration scenes. Joe is perhaps best known for his work called "Migration" which portrays one of his childhood experiences, when families set sail in an umiak (large sealskin boat) to travel to better hunting grounds. This scene was repeatedly depicted in Joe's carvings, drawings and prints. 

"He left a legacy of sculpture, prints and drawings, which were unique in the way he crafted even the most mundane subject. His owls were horned 'Joe' owls, his human figures, animals and hunting scenes were instantly distinguishable, as were the haunting 'migration' boat scenes, whether rendered as drawings, prints or sculptures. Perhaps redundant as identification, but part of his enormous charm, was the inevitable 'JOE' (sometimes backwards) carved into his stones, almost as part of the image. 

His contributions to editioned print collections started with the initial release in 1962 and continued without a break through the next 10 collections for a total of some 70 stonecut prints. He cut his own stones and probably tried his hand at printing, too, on occasion."

Joe's cousin, Davidialuk Alasua Amittu was also a renowned Puvirnituq artist. The two men were known in the community as great storytellers and they both produced many sculptures in the 1950s and graphics in the 1960s. Both men enjoyed long and fruitful careers and passed away within months of each other in 1976. Joe's daughter, Sarah Joe Qinuajua is also an artist in Puvirnituq.

* Sandra Barz, "Canadian Inuit Print Artist/Printer Biographies" (New York: Arts and Culture of the North, 1990), page 65


Exhibitions

  • Alaska Eskimo Dolls/Inuit Prints, Provincial Museum of Alberta, sponsored by the Alaska State Council on the Arts
  • Arctic Mirror, Canadian Museum of Civilization
  • Arctic Spirit 35 Years of Canadian Inuit Art, Frye Art Museum
  • Arctic Travel, Winnipeg Art Gallery
  • Arctic Vision: Art of the Canadian Inuit, Department of Indian Affairs and Northern Development and Canadian Arctic Producers
  • Arctic Wildlife: The Art of the Inuit, Musee des Beaux-Arts de Montreal
  • By the Light of the Qulliq: Eskimo Life in the Canadian Arctic, Smithsonian Institution, A travelling exhibition of Inuit art from the Feheley Collection
  • Canadian Eskimo Art: a representative exhibition from the collection of Professor and Mrs. Philip Gray, Fine Arts Gallery, Montana State University
  • Canadian Eskimo Arts Festival, Alaska Methodist University Galleries
  • Chisel and Brush/Le ciseau et la brosse, Department of Indian Affairs and Northern Development
  • Contemporary Indian and Inuit Art of Canada, Department of Indian Affairs and Northern Development, Ottawa, presented at the General Assembly Building, United Nations
  • Contemporary Inuit Art, National Gallery of Canada
  • Contemporary Inuit Drawings, Macdonald Stewart Art Centre
  • Drawings and Sculpture by Joe Talirunili and Davidialuk Amittu, The Innuit Gallery of Eskimo Art
  • Each Depends on the Other, Houston North Gallery
  • Early and Contemporary Sculpture and Prints by Well-Known Inuit Artists, Arctic Artistry
  • Eskimo Art, Queens Museum
  • Eskimo Art in Northern Quebec, presented by La Federation des Cooperatives du Nouveau-Quebec at "Man and His World"
  • Eskimo Carvings and Prints from the Collection of York University, Art Gallery of York University
  • Eskimo Narrative, Winnipeg Art Gallery
  • Eskimo Sculpture, Winnipeg Art Gallery presented at the Manitoba Legislative Building
  • Espaces Inuit, Maison Hamel-Bruneau
  • Esquimaux, Peuple du Quebec, Musee du Quebec
  • Exhibition of Inuit Art, Harbourfront Centre organized by the Macdonald Stewart Art Centre, Guelph
  • First Annual Collectors' Invitational Exhibition, Inuk 1/Eskimo Art
  • Granville Island Canadian Inuit Sculpture Exhibition (first exhibition), Vancouver Inuit Art Society
  • Granville Island Canadian Inuit Sculpture Exhibition (second exhibition), Vancouver Inuit Art Society
  • Grasp Tight the Old Ways: Selections from the Klamer Family Collection of Inuit Art, Art Gallery of Ontario
  • Hunter of the Sacred Game: Traditional Life on the Land, Organized by the Arts and Learning Services Foundation
  • Hunters of Old, Inukshuk Galleries Inc.
  • Hunting in the Arctic, Alberta Provincial Museum and Archives
  • Im Schatten der Sonne: Zeitgenossische Kunst der Indianer und Eskimos in Kanada/In the Shadow of the Sun: Contemporary Indian and Inuit Art in Canada, Canadian Museum of Civilization
  • Inspiration Four Decades of Sculpture, Marion Scott Gallery
  • Inuit Art From the Glenbow Collection, Glenbow Museum
  • Inuit Art in the 1970s, Department of Indian Affairs and Northern Development, and the Agnes Etherington Art Centre
  • Inuit Art: New Loans and Acquisitions, Macdonald Stewart Art Centre, University of Guelph
  • Inuit Art: Tradition and Regeneration, Canadian Museum of Civilization
  • Inuit Games/Inuit Pinguangit/Jeux des inuit, Department of Indian Affairs and Northern Development
  • Inuit Graphics Through the Year: Rare Prints from the Arctic, Arctic Artistry
  • Inuit Master Artists of the 1970s, Inuit Gallery of Vancouver
  • Inuit Masterworks: Selections from the Collection of Indian and Northern Affairs Canada, McMichael Canadian Collection
  • Inuit Survival, Enook Galleries, Waterloo, Ontario Presented at the University of Waterloo Art Gallery
  • Joe Talirunili, Canadiana Galleries
  • Joe Talirunili from Povungnituk: Sculpture, Prints, Drawings, The Innuit Gallery of Eskimo Art
  • Les Inuit du Nouveau-Quebec, Musee du Quebec
  • Mythmakers: Davidialuk and Talirunili, Winnipeg Art Gallery
  • Northern Exposure: Inuit Images of Travel, Burnaby Art Gallery
  • On Collectors and Collecting: Selections from the Herb & Cece Schreiber Family Collection, The Art Gallery of Hamilton
  • Povungnituk, Winnipeg Art Gallery
  • Povungnituk Print Collection *62, (annual collection)
  • Povungnituk Print Collection *64, (annual collection)
  • Povungnituk Print Collection *65, (annual collection)
  • Povungnituk Print Collection *66, (annual collection)
  • Povungnituk Print Collection *68, (annual collection)
  • Povungnituk Print Collection *69 (for catalogue see Povungnituk Prints 1960-1970 Retrospective), (annual collection)
  • Povungnituk Print Collection *72, (annual collection)
  • Povungnituk Print Collection *75, (annual collection)
  • Povungnituk Print Collection *76, (annual collection)
  • Povungnituk Print Collection *77, (annual collection)
  • Primitive Art from the Arctic, Arctic Artistry
  • Recent Stone Sculpture from Arctic Quebec, Arctic Artistry
  • Sanaugasi Takujaksat: A Travelling Celebration of Inuit Sculpture, Presented by Canadian Arctic Producers Ltd., with the assistance of Indian and Northern Affairs Canada, Ottawa
  • Sculpture and New Acquisitions to the Inuit Art Collection, Macdonald Stewart Art Centre
  • Sculpture Inuit 25 Years After, Canadian Guild of Crafts Quebec
  • Sculpture of the Inuit: Masterwork Exhibitors of the Canadian Arctic, Inuit Gallery of Vancouver
  • Sculpture/Inuit: Masterworks of the Canadian Arctic, Canadian Eskimo Arts Council
  • Selections from the Toronto-Dominion Collection of Eskimo Art, National Arts Centre
  • Stones, Bones, Cloth, and Paper: Inuit Art in Edmonton Collections, Edmonton Art Gallery
  • Stories in Stone: Soapstone Sculptures From Northern Quebec and Kenya, La Federation des Cooperatives du Nouveau-Quebec
  • Takamit - Canadian Eskimo Art: Selections from Private Collections and the Government of Canada, Organized by La Federation des Cooperatives du Nouveau-Quebec and the Jane Voorhees Zimmerli Art Museum, Rutgers University
  • The Arctic/L'Artique, UNESCO
  • The Art of the Eskimo, Newman Galleries
  • The Art of the Eskimo, Newman Galleries
  • The Bessie Bulman Collection, Winnipeg Art Gallery
  • The Early Years - Fifties and Sixties, The Innuit Gallery of Eskimo Art
  • The Early Years: Sculpture from the 50's and 60's, The Innuit Gallery of Eskimo Art
  • The First Passionate Collector: The Ian Lindsay Collection of Inuit Art, Winnipeg Art Gallery
  • The Inuit Print/L'estampe inuit, Department of Indian Affairs and Northern Development and the National Museum of Man
  • The Klamer Family Collection of Inuit Art from the Art Gallery of Ontario, University of Guelph
  • The Lindsay and Swartz Collections: New Acquisitions, Winnipeg Art Gallery
  • The Spirit of the Land, The Koffler Gallery
  • The Tactile Eskimo Art Collection/ Collection de sculptures esquimaudes appreciables par le toucher, Department of Indian Affairs and Northern Development, in cooperation with the Canadian National Institute for the Blind
  • Things Made by Inuit, La Federation des Cooperatives du Nouveau-Quebec
  • Uumajut: Animal Imagery in Inuit Art, Winnipeg Art Gallery
  • Works on Paper from the Permanent Collection of Inuit Art, Canadian Guild of Crafts Quebec
  • Works on Paper from the Permanent Collection of Inuit Art, Canadian Guild of Craft Quebec
  • [Inuit Art Exhibition], Whitby Arts Incorporated, The Station Gallery

Collections

  • Agnes Etherington Art Centre, Queen's University, Kingston
  • Art Gallery of Ontario, Toronto
  • Art Gallery of Windsor, Windsor
  • Art Gallery of York University, Downsview
  • Avataq Cultural Institute, Montreal
  • Canada Council Art Bank, Ottawa
  • Canadian Guild of Crafts Quebec, Montreal
  • Canadian Museum of Civilization, Hull
  • Confederation des caisses populaires et d'economie Desjardins, Levis
  • Dennos Museum Center, Northwestern Michigan College, Traverse City
  • Eskimo Museum, Churchill
  • Glenbow Museum, Calgary
  • Klamer Family Collection, Art Gallery of Ontario, Toronto
  • Laurentian University Museum and Arts Centre, Sudbury
  • McMichael Canadian Art Collection, Kleinburg
  • Musee d'Art Contemporain de Montreal, Montreal
  • Musee de la civilisation, Quebec City
  • Musee des beaux-arts de Montreal, Montreal
  • Musee du Quebec, Quebec City
  • Museum of Anthropology, University of British Columbia, Vancouver
  • National Gallery of Canada, Ottawa
  • Saputik Museum, Povungnituk
  • Sarick Collection, Art Gallery of Ontario, Toronto
  • Toronto-Dominion Bank Collection, Toronto
  • University of New Brunswick, Fredericton
  • Winnipeg Art Gallery, Winnipeg
  • York University, Toronto

Publications

  • BAKER LAKE DRAWINGS., Author: Winnipeg Art Gallery, Publication: Winnipeg: The Winnipeg Art Gallery (1972)
  • CAPE DORSET — A Decade of Eskimo Prints and Recent Sculpture = Dix ans d'estampes esquimaudes et sculptures recentes, Author: National Gallery of Canada, Publication: Ottawa: The National Gallery of Canada (1967)
  • ESKIMO SCULPTURE: Selections from the Twomey Collection., Author: Winnipeg Art Gallery, Publication: Winnipeg: The Winnipeg Art Gallery (1972)
  • INUIT GALLERY OF VANCOUVER PRESENTS AN EXHIBITION OF SCULPTURES BY OSITOK IPEELEE, RCA, Author: Inuit Gallery of Vancouver., Publication: Inuit Gallery of Vancouver. (c.) Inuit Gallery of Vamcouver, 1993. (1993)
  • SEEPEE IPELLIE — Recent Sculpture, Author: Ipeelee, Seepee, Publication: Ottawa: Canadian Arctic Producers Cooperative Limited. (1981)
  • THE PEOPLE WITHIN = LES GENS DE L'INTERIEUR., Author: Art Gallery of Ontario, Publication: Toronto: Art Gallery of Ontario. (1976)

Artwork

Title Last Sold At Auction
BEAR HUNTING SCENE 2007-04 (April 2007)
BIRD 2020-09 (September 2020)
BOAT WITH OWL 2007-04 (April 2007)
CAMP 2010-04 (April 2010)
CARIBOU 2021-12 (December 2021)
CARIBOU HUNT 2017-10 (October 2017)
CROUCHING HARE 2019-11 (November 2019)
DESIGN NO. 102 2013-02 (February 2013)
EMPHATIC MAN 2012-11 (November 2012)
ESKIMO CAMPING GROUND 2009-01 (January 2009)
FAMILY AND DOGS/WOLVES 2013-05 (May 2013)
FAMILY OF A LONG TIME AGO 2007-11 (November 2007)
FAMILY OF OWLS 2007-11 (November 2007)
HARE 2021-07 (July 2021)
HOMECOMING 2007-11 (November 2007)
HORNED OWL 2019-11 (November 2019)
HUNTER 2019-05 (May 2019)
HUNTER AND CARIBOU 2008-11 (November 2008)
HUNTER AND WALRUS SCENE 2018-11 (November 2018)
HUNTER CARRYING KAYAK 2020-09 (September 2020)
HUNTER CARRYING PACK, BOW AND GUN 2016-11 (November 2016)
HUNTER HARPOONING WALRUS 2018-11 (November 2018)
HUNTER IN A KAYAK 2020-09 (September 2020)
HUNTER RETURNING WITH CATCH 2020-09 (September 2020)
HUNTER WITH HARPOON 2021-05 (May 2021)
HUNTER WITH HARPOON, BOW AND ARROW 2019-05 (May 2019)
HUNTER WITH WEAPONS 2011-05 (May 2011)
HUNTERS IN KAYAK 2019-04 (April 2019)
HUNTERS WHO WENT ADRIFT 2011-05 (May 2011)
HUNTING 2016-11 (November 2016)
HUNTING A BEAR 2019-05 (May 2019)
HUNTING BY QAMUTIK 2021-06 (June 2021)
HUNTING OF YESTERYEARS 2019-05 (May 2019)
HUNTING OWLS 2011-11 (November 2011)
HUNTING SEALS 2011-05 (May 2011)
HUNTING WHALES 2016-08 (August 2016)
HUNTING WHALES BY KAYAK 2011-05 (May 2011)
HUNTING WITH BOW 2020-06 (June 2020)
HUNTING; BIRDS 2020-03 (March 2020)
INUIT FAMILY A LONG TIME AGO 2010-04 (April 2010)
INUIT FAMILY OF A LONG TIME AGO 2021-06 (June 2021)
INUIT HUNTER 2012-04 (April 2012)
JOE’S ESCAPE 2015-11 (November 2015)
JOURNEY 2007-04 (April 2007)
KAYAK 2016-08 (August 2016)
KNEELING WOMAN WITH ULU AND QUDLIQ HOLDING CHILD IN AMAUTIQ 2020-09 (September 2020)
LEAVING FOR THE HUNT BY DOG TEAM 2012-07 (July 2012)
LEAVING FOR THE HUNT BY DOGTEAM, 1975 2012-02 (February 2012)
LEAVING FROM THE HUNT BY DOG TEAM 2007-11 (November 2007)
LONG TIME FLOATING ON ICE FIELD 2018-11 (November 2018)
LOON 2015-11 (November 2015)
MAN AND DOG 2010-11 (November 2010)
MAN HOLDING A NET 2019-11 (November 2019)
MEN GOING HUNTING 2021-02 (February 2021)
MIGRATION BOAT 2020-09 (September 2020)
MOVING TO HUNTING GROUND 2020-01 (January 2020)
NOMADS 2012-11 (November 2012)
OLD TOOLS USED TO SURVIVE A LONG TIME AGO 2014-06 (June 2014)
OLD WAY OF LIVING 2019-11 (November 2019)
OTTER EATING FISH 2010-11 (November 2010)
OTTER WITH FISH 2015-06 (June 2015)
OWL 2021-05 (May 2021)
OWL AND SMALL ANIMAL 2009-11 (November 2009)
OWL CAUGHT A HARE 2015-11 (November 2015)
OWL WITH SPREAD WINGS 2021-05 (May 2021)
OWLS HUNTING LEMMINGS 2011-11 (November 2011)
POLAR BEAR 2013-11 (November 2013)
POLAR BEAR EATING SEAL 2011-05 (May 2011)
POOTOOGOOK HARPOONING A BEAR 2018-11 (November 2018)
POOTOOGOOK HARPOONING THE BEAR 2011-05 (May 2011)
PULLING LIKE A DOG 2011-05 (May 2011)
READY FOR THE HUNT 2016-09 (September 2016)
RETURN OF THE SURVIVORS FROM THE FLOATING ICE 2007-04 (April 2007)
SEATED INUIT WOMAN 2013-05 (May 2013)
SEATED MOTHER AND CHILD HOLDING A DOG AND VESSEL 2020-09 (September 2020)
SMALL HOMES -VAST SPACES 2011-05 (May 2011)
SMALL HOMES, VAST SPACES 2012-04 (April 2012)
SPRING CAMP 2010-11 (November 2010)
STANDING HUNTER 2015-06 (June 2015)
STANDING WOMAN 2010-04 (April 2010)
STORY ABOUT HUNTERS LOST IN ICEBERGS WHILE HUNTING SEALS 2019-05 (May 2019)
THE ANCIENT WAY OF HUNTING 2016-08 (August 2016)
THE CARIBOU HUNT 2019-09 (September 2019)
THE HUNTERS CAPTURE WHALES WITH THEIR HARPOONS AND SEALSKIN FLOATS 2019-11 (November 2019)
THE MIGRATION 2014-06 (June 2014)
THE OLD WAY OF LIVING 2012-11 (November 2012)
THE OWL AND LEMMING 2015-11 (November 2015)
THEIR BOAT IS OF SEALSKIN 2020-08 (August 2020)
THEY ARRIVED AT THEIR SUMMER CAMP 2021-03 (March 2021)
TO SHOW THE OLD WAYS OF THE PEOPLE IN THEIR LAND 2021-10 (October 2021)
TWO JOES GOING WHALE HUNTING 2020-02 (February 2020)
TWO MEN HUNTING A BEAR 2012-11 (November 2012)
TWO WORKS, UNTITLED 2019-12 (December 2019)
UNKNOWN (HUNTING ON LAND AND BY WATER) 2016-08 (August 2016)
UNTITLED 2019-06 (June 2019)
UNTITLED 2007-11 (November 2007)
UNTITLED 2020-09 (September 2020)
UNTITLED 2011-05 (May 2011)
UNTITLED 2020-09 (September 2020)
UNTITLED 2020-09 (September 2020)
UNTITLED 2020-09 (September 2020)
UNTITLED 2020-09 (September 2020)
UNTITLED 2020-09 (September 2020)
UNTITLED 2007-11 (November 2007)
UNTITLED 2020-09 (September 2020)
UNTITLED 2019-06 (June 2019)
UNTITLED 2018-03 (March 2018)
UNTITLED (HUNTING BY DOGTEAM, HUNTING BY KAYAK) 2014-06 (June 2014)
UNTITLED (LARGE OWL ON A BRANCH, RABBIT & LEMMING) 2010-08 (August 2010)
UNTITLED (OWL WITH LEMMINGS) 2010-10 (October 2010)
UNTITLED (THREE OWLS AND PREY) 2010-05 (May 2010)
WALRUS 2021-06 (June 2021)
WALRUS HUNTING FROM KAYAK 2019-05 (May 2019)
WALRUS, CA. 1970
WHALE HUNTING 2017-08 (August 2017)
WHALING 2020-06 (June 2020)
WHITE OWL AND LEMMING 2011-05 (May 2011)
WOMAN CARRYING PAIL AND QULLIQ 2015-06 (June 2015)
WOMAN WITH BUCKET 2021-05 (May 2021)
WOMAN WITH CHILD HOLDING HER DOG 2015-11 (November 2015)
WOMAN WITH PAIL AND ULU 2019-05 (May 2019)
“UUMAJUNIATU” (UNIDENTIFIED) 2016-08 (August 2016)

Recent Auction Results

WALRUS, CA. 1970
Estimate: 700 — 900
Sold: May 2024 — Sold For: $625
CARIBOU
Estimate: 1,500 — 2,500
Sold: Dec 2021 — Sold For: $900
TO SHOW THE OLD WAYS OF THE PEOPLE IN THEIR LAND
Estimate: 400 — 600
Sold: Oct 2021 — Sold For: $660
HARE
Estimate: 800 — 1,200
Sold: Jul 2021 — Sold For: $960
WALRUS
Estimate: 2,000 — 4,000
Sold: Jun 2021 — Sold For: $1,200
INUIT FAMILY OF A LONG TIME AGO
Estimate: 600 — 900
Sold: Jun 2021 — Sold For: $600

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