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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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Pitseolak Ashoona, O.C., R.C.A.

CAMP SCENE


PITSEOLAK ASHOONA, O.C., R.C.A. (1904-1983), KINNGAIT (CAPE DORSET)
CAMP SCENE

engraving, 1967, 43/50, Minor imperfections, mat burn around perimeter, remnant of hinge tape on verso. Overall very good condition.

Please contact the specialist for further condition information.

6 x 8 in — 15.2 x 20.3 cm

Provenance:
Estate of W.A. Ross MacFadden, Toronto, ON

Note:
Pitseolak Ashoona's art career began with sewing and embroidering in an arts and crafts program initiated by the Department of Northern Affairs and National Resources. For two years she made primarily sewn works until the Kinngait (Cape Dorset) graphics studio was established in 1959. Inspired by works made by her cousin Kiakshuk, Pitseolak began drawing, and quickly became recognized for her work in graphite, and later print media. [1] An early practitioner of engraving following its introduction by Terry Ryan (1922-2017) to Kinngait in 1961, Pitseolak’s drawing style of shading through rapid line movements seems to have found perfect expression in the medium of engraving with its capacity to express wiry thin lines. [2]

A highly acclaimed artist even in her own lifetime, Pitseolak Ashoona was also the mother of important artists Kiawak, Kaka, Koomwartok, Ottochie, and Napatchie Pootoogook.

This print, Camp Scene from 1967 depicts a domestic scene beset by birds. The image is rendered in Pitseolak’s distinctive motif of rhythmic parallel lines.

In an interview recorded by Dorothy Eber in 1970, and documented in her book Pitseolak: Pictures out of my life Pitseolak explained: “My name is Pitseolak, the Eskimo word for the sea pigeon. When I see pitseolaks over the sea, I say, “There go those lovely birds–that’s me flying!” [3]

Of the relatively small number of early engravings produced by Pitseolak, we are very pleased to offer nine in this auction (see lots 14 through 22).


Published:

West Baffin Co-operative, Eskimo Graphic Art / Les Arts Graphiques Esquimaux 1967, Cape Dorset, N.W.T.: West Baffin Co-operative, 1967. pl. 69.

References:

1. Lalonde, Christone, “Pitseolak Ashoona, Life and Work”, Art Canada Institute. Accessed February 21, 2022. Click here to read more.

2. Eber, Dorothy Harley, Pitseolak Ashoona Pictures Out of My Life, Montreal & Kingston: McGill-Queen’s University Press, 2003, p. 102.

3. Ibid, p. 13.

Estimate: $300—500

Auction Results

Auction Date Auction House Lot # Low Est High Est Sold Price
2022-03-17 Waddington's 19 300 500 180.00
2021-03-04 Waddington's 25 200 400 192.00

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