Cape Dorset Annual Print Collection
Gallery Gevik is pleased to announce the release of the 2024 Annual Cape Dorset Print Collection. This collection features thirty-four prints by twenty artists which will go on sale Saturday October 19, 2024.
2024 marks the 65th year of Kinngait Studios’ annual print collection. This past year was one for celebration, with the distinction of two Kinngait artists in particular: Shuvinai Ashoona and Ningiukulu Teevee were granted the Governor General’s Award and the Kenojauk Ashevak Memorial Award, respectively. However, it is with sadness and gratitude that we also commemorate the passing of two other artists of great significance, Papiara Tukiki and Qiatsuq Niviaqsi. Their art will continue to be celebrated as symbols of their wisdom, skill, and experiences.
Kinngait (Cape Dorset)
Kinngait (formerly known as Cape Dorset) is an Inuit hamlet located on Dorset Island near Foxe Peninsula at the southern tip of Baffin Island in the Qikiqtaaluk Region of Nunavut, Canada. The Inuktitut name of the village means “high mountains”.
Since the 1950s, Kinngait, which calls itself the “Capital of Inuit Art” has been a centre for drawing, printmaking, and carving. Even today, printmaking and carving are the community’s main economic activities. Each year, Kinngait Studios issues an annual print collection. Kinngait has been hailed as the most artistic community in Canada, with some 22% of the labour force employed in the arts.
Between the years of 1959 and 1974, Kinngait artists produced more than 48,000 prints. Well-known artists of Kinngait include Pudlo Pudlat and Kenojuak Ashevak. Ashevak’s drawings of owls have appeared on Canadian stamps as well as a Canadian quarter. Inuit photographer and author Peter Pitseolak spent several years of his life living in Kinngait.
