Irene Avaalaqiaq Sold at Auction Prices
Sculptor
IRENE AVAALAAQIAQ TIKTAALAAQ
(TIKTAALAAQ; AHVALAKIAK; AVALAKIAK; AHVALAQUAQ)
Born: February 28, 1941 Female E2-423
Place of Birth: Princess Mary Lake (Kazan River area)
Resides: Baker Lake
Drawings, Prints, Printmaking, Wallhangings, Sculpture
Irene's husband, David Tiktaalaaq, is a carver and printmaker. Her
brother, William Ukpatiku, is also a carver and printmaker, as well as a
crafts artist.
"Avaalaaqiaq's style is bold and colorful, much like the artist herself.
Her subject matter tends always to be shamanic in origin and is based on the
Inuit myths, legends, and beliefs of traditional times as told to her by her
grandmother. The shamanic belief system practiced in traditional times called
for an easy interplay between man and animals. Avaalaaqiaq's hybrid, flowing
figures aptly portray this harmonious relationship--the forms are fluid and
flat--half human, half animal; their heads are often in profile or duplicate
halves, with staring eyes and gaping mouths. Her unique figures are readily
recognizable. Avaalaaqiaq often sews a border around her imagery, perhaps to
contain its unworldly content."
Marie Bouchard.
In "North American Women Artists
of the Twentieth Century: A Biographical
Dictionary" 1995.
EXHIBITIONS:
September 1973 Stones and Bones of Baffin Island
The Arctic Circle
Los Angeles, California, U.S.A.
1974 Crafts from Arctic Canada/Artisanat de
l'arctique canadien
Canadian Eskimo Arts Council
Ottawa, Ontario
(tour)
(illustrated catalogue)
March 1974 Baker Lake Sculpture
The Innuit Gallery of Eskimo Art
Toronto, Ontario
(illustrated catalogue)
March - April 1974 Eskimo Wallhangings
McIntosh Gallery,
University of Western Ontario
London, Ontario
(brochure)
1975, 1976, 1978, 1979, 1980, Baker Lake Print Collection
1981, 1982, 1984, 1985, 1986, (annual collection)
1988, 1990 (illustrated catalogue)
1975, 1979, 1981, 1982, 1984, Baker Lake Print Collection (printmaker)
1985, 1986, 1987 (annual collection)
June 1976 Baker Lake Wallhangings 1976
The Guild Shop
Toronto, Ontario
January 1977 - June '82 The Inuit Print/L'estampe inuit
Department of Indian Affairs and
Northern Development and the
National Museum of Man
Ottawa, Ontario
(tour)
(illustrated catalogue)
September 1978 Baker Lake Wallhangings 1978
The Innuit Gallery of Eskimo Art
Toronto, Ontario
September - October '78 Baker Lake Wallhangings 1978
Gallery One
Toronto, Ontario
January - June 1979 Spirits and Dreams - Arts of the Inuit
of Baker Lake
Department of Indian Affairs and Northern
Development
Ottawa, Ontario
(tour)
(illustrated brochure)
March 1979 Baker Lake Wallhangings 1979
The Arctic Circle
Los Angeles, California, U.S.A.
July 1979 - May 1980 Inuit Art in the 1970s
Department of Indian Affairs
and Northern Development, and the
Agnes Etherington Art Centre
Kingston, Ontario
(tour)
(illustrated catalogue)
July 1979 - 1981 Keewatin Wallhangings 1979-1981
Canadian Arctic Producers Ltd.
Ottawa, Ontario
(tour)
November - Dec1979 In Celebration
Canadian Guild of Crafts Quebec
Montreal, Quebec
December 1979 Baker Lake Arts - Prints, Sculpture,
Wallhangings
Playhouse Gallery
Cleveland, Ohio, U.S.A.
January - Feb 1980 Inuit Master Artists of the 1970s
Inuit Gallery of Vancouver
Vancouver, British Columbia
April - May 1980 Baker Lake - Drawings, Sculpture,
Tapestries
Theo Waddington
Toronto, Ontario
June - July 1980 Wallhangings
Theo Waddington
New York, New York, U.S.A.
November 1980 Baker Lake Prints - Ten Year Retrospective
The Upstairs Gallery
Winnipeg, Manitoba
June 1981 Transformation
The Arctic Circle
Los Angeles, California, U.S.A.
(illustrated brochure)
October 1981 Inuit Masks
Inuit Gallery of Vancouver
Vancouver, British Columbia
(illustrated catalogue)
June - October 1982 Inuit Art from the Art Centre Collection
Macdonald Stewart Art Centre
Guelph, Ontario
September - Oct 1982 Keewatin Wallhangings 1982
Windsong Galleries
Mississauga, Ontario
1983 Hunter of the Sacred Game: Traditional
Life on the Land
Organized by the Arts and Learning
Services Foundation
Minneapolis, Minnesota, U.S.A.
(tour)
February - Mar 1983 Return of the Birds
Inuit Gallery of Vancouver
Vancouver, British Columbia
(illustrated catalogue)
February - April 1983 Baker Lake Prints & Print-Drawings:
1970-1976
Winnipeg Art Gallery
Winnipeg, Manitoba
(illustrated catalogue)
May 1983 - April 1985 Grasp Tight the Old Ways: Selections from
the Klamer Family Collection of Inuit Art
Art Gallery of Ontario
Toronto, Ontario
(tour)
(illustrated catalogue)
October - Nov 1983 The Arctic/L'Artique
UNESCO
Paris, France
(illustrated catalogue)
Feb 1984 - June 1986 Arctic Vision: Art of the Canadian Inuit
Department of Indian Affairs and
Northern Development and Canadian
Arctic Producers
Ottawa, Ontario
(tour)
(illustrated catalogue)
March - April 1984 Heritage of the Inuit: Masterpieces
of the Eskimo
Colorado Galleries of the Arts,
Arapahoe Community College
Littleton, Colorado, U.S.A.
November - Dec '84 50 Inuit Prints
Canadian Arctic Producers in
coordination with the Hudson's Bay
Company Inuit Art Marketing Service,
held at Simpson's
Toronto, Ontario
(illustrated brochure)
February - June 1987 The Lindsay and Swartz Collections:
New Acquisitions
Winnipeg Art Gallery
Winnipeg, Manitoba
December 1987 - February 1988
Inuk, Inuit: Art et tradition chez les
esquimaux d'hier et d'aujourd'hui
presented by L'Iglou Art Esquimau, Douai,
at Musee des Beaux-arts d'Arras
Arras, France
(illustrated catalogue)
December 1987 - March 1989
Contemporary Inuit Drawings
Macdonald Stewart Art Centre
Guelph, Ontario
(tour)
(illustrated catalogue)
April 1988 [L'art inuit]
Presented by l'Iglou Art Esquimau, Douai
at Palais de L'Europe, Le Touquet
France
June - September 1988 The World Around Me
University of Lethbridge Art Gallery
Lethbridge, Alberta
July 1988 [L'art inuit]
Presented by l'Iglou Art Esquimau, Douai
at Chapelle de la Visitation, Thonon
France
November 1988 [L'art inuit]
Presented by l'Iglou Art Esquimau, Douai
at Les Martres-de-Veyre
France
December 1988 [L'art inuit]
Presented by l'Iglou Art Esquimau, Douai
at Galerie des Tanneurs, Mulhouse
France
December 1988 - 1989 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
Ottawa, Ontario
(tour)
(illustrated catalogue)
February - March 1989 [L'art inuit]
Presented by l'Iglou Art Esquimau, Douai
at St. Marcellin
France
March - April 1989 [L'art inuit]
Presented by l'Iglou Art Esquimau, Douai
at Galerie Autre Regard, Paris
France
March - April 1989 [L'art inuit]
Presented by l'Iglou Art Esquimau, Douai
at Palais de l'Europe, le Touquet
France
April 1989 Collecting Inuit Art -
Shifting Perceptions
Agnes Etherington Art Centre,
Queen's University
Kingston, Ontario
(illustrated catalogue)
June - July 1989 Art Inuit
Presented by l'Iglou Art Esquimau, Douai
at Galerie Sanguine, La Rochelle
France
August 1989 Art Inuit, la Sculpture des Esquimaux
du Canada
Presented by l'Iglou Art Esquimau, Douai
at Chapelle de la Visitation,
Thonon
France
August - Sept 1989 Baker Lake Prints: 1970 - 1982
Retrospective
Inuit Gallery of Vancouver
Vancouver, British Columbia
(illustrated catalogue)
August - October 1989 Inuit Graphic Art from Indian
& Northern Affairs Canada
Winnipeg Art Gallery
Winnipeg, Manitoba
October 1989 Baker Lake Print Retrospective:
A Twenty Year Anniversary
The Upstairs Gallery
Winnipeg, Manitoba
(illustrated catalogue)
December 1989 Art Inuit, la Sculpture des Esquimaux du Canada
Presented by l'Iglou Art Esquimau, Douai
at Les Chiroux, Centre Culturel de la Wallonie,
Liege
Belgium
January 1990 Art Inuit, la Sculpture des Esquimaux du Canada
Presented by l'Iglou Art Esquimau, Douai
at Centre d'Action Culturelle du Bassin
Houllier, Lorrain, Saint Avold
France
January - Sept990 Arctic Mirror
Canadian Museum of Civilization
Hull, Quebec
February - March 1990 Beeldhouwkunst van de Inuit (Canada)
by l'Iglou Art Esquimau, Douai, France
at Amphora Finippon pvba, Sint Andries,
Brugge, Belgium
March 1990 Art Inuit, l'Art des Esquimaux du Canada
Presented by l'Iglou Art Esquimau, Douai
at Maison Falleur, Cambrai
France
October - November '90 A Woman's Vision
Art Space Gallery
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, U.S.A.
November 1990 Baker Lake Wallhangings
The Innuit Gallery of Eskimo Art
Toronto, Ontario
November - Dec 1990 Art Inuit: Autour de la Collection de Cape
Dorset 1990
Presented by l'Iglou Art Esquimau, Douai
at Centre Culturel Canadien
Paris, France
January 1991 Sojourns to Nunavut: Contemporary Inuit Art
from Canada
at Bunkamura Art Gallery, presented by the
University of British Columbia Museum of
Anthropology and The McMichael Canadian Art
Collection
Tokyo, Japan
(tour)
(illustrated catalogue)
February - March 1991 Inuit Drawings
Albers Gallery
San Francisco, California, U.S.A.
February - April 1991 Art Inuit
Presented by l'Iglou Art Esquimau, Douai
at Galerie Humbert
Nantes, France
March - April 1991 Art Inuit
Presented by l'Iglou Art Esquimau, Douai
at Le Theatre
La Ciotat, France
April - June 1991 Art Inuit
Presented by l'Iglou Art Esquimau, Douai
at Galerie La Tour des Cardinaux
L'Isle sur la Sorgue, France
May - June 1991 Art Inuit
Presented by l'Iglou Art Esquimau, Douai
at La Halle aux Bles
Saint Malo, France
June - July 1991 Art Inuit
Presented by l'Iglou Art Esquimau, Douai
at Galerie Ombre et Lumiere
Ensisheim, France
July 1991 The Great Northern Arts Festival
held in Inuvik
Northwest Territories
August - Sept 1991 Art Inuit
Presented by l'Iglou Art Esquimau, Douai
at Galerie Akenaton
Troyes, France
October - Dec 1991 Art Inuit
Presented by l'Iglou Art Esquimau, Douai
at Galerie Maite Aubert
Le Havre, France
November - Dec 1991 Art Inuit: Autour de la Collection de Cape
Dorset 1991
Presented by l'Iglou Art Esquimau, Douai
at Le Colombier
Ville D'Avray, France
November 1991 - March 1992
Moving Around the Form:
Inuit Sculpture and Prints
Agnes Etherington Art Centre
Queen's University
Kingston, Ontario
February - April 1992 Art Inuit
Presented by l'Iglou Art Esquimau, Douai
at Galerie Montador
Dieppe, France
June - July 1992 Women of the North: An Exhibition
of art by Inuit Women of the
Canadian Arctic
Marion Scott Gallery
Vancouver, British Columbia
(illustrated catalogue)
June - October 1992 Nouveau Territoires...
350/500 Ans Apres, Presented at les maisons
de la culture Cote-des-Neiges, Notre-Dame-
de-Grace, and Rosemont-Petite Patrie
Montreal Recreation and Community
Development Service and les Ateliers
Visions Planetaire
Montreal, Quebec
(tour)
(illustrated catalogue)
November 1992 - January 1993
Borealis: Inuit Images of Man and Animals
Freeport Art Museum and Cultural Centre
Freeport, Illinois
March - April 1993 The Theme of Transformation in Inuit Sculpture
The Isaacs/Innuit Gallery
Toronto
April - July 1993 Multiple Realities: Inuit Images of
Shamanic Transformation
Winnipeg Art Gallery
Winnipeg, Manitoba
(illustrated brochure)
November 1993 Northern Lights: Inuit Textile Art from the
Canadian Arctic
Baltimore Museum of Art
Baltimore
(tour)
November - Dec 1993 Women Who Draw: 30 Years of Graphic
Art from the Canadian Arctic
Feheley Fine Arts
Toronto, Ontario
November 1993 - January 1994
Contemporary Inuit Drawings
Muscarelle Museum of Art
College of William and Mary
Williamsburg, Virginia, U.S.A.
(illustrated catalogue)
March 1994 Patiently I Sing
Selections from the Tyler/Brooks Collection
Carleton University Art Gallery
Ottawa, Ontario
(illustrated catalogue)
March - August 1994 Kunst aus der Arktis
Volkerkundmuseum der Universitat Zurich
Zurich, Switzerland
(illustrated catalogue)
August - October 1994 Inuit Art from the Canadian Arctic
Bayly Art Museum
University of Virginia
Charlottesville, Virginia, U.S.A.
August 1994 - April 1997 Qamanittuaq: Where the River Widens
Drawings by Baker Lake Artists
Macdonald Stewart Art Centre
Guelph, Ontario
(tour)
(illustrated catalogue)
September - October '94 Kunst van de Inuit Eskimo's
Gemeentelijk Kunstcentrum
Huis Hellemans
Edegem, Belgium
(illustrated brochure)
1995 Baker Lake - Uncatalogued Prints 1979-1985
A retrospective collection exhibited at
selected galleries, organized by
Canadian Arctic Producers
Winnipeg, Manitoba
(illustrated brochure)
March - July 1995 Immaginario Inuit
Arte e cultura degli esquimesi canadesi
Galleria d'Arte Moderna
e Contemporanea
Verona, Italy
(illustrated catalogue)
April - May 1995 Baker Lake Wallhangings
Isaacs/Innuit Gallery
Toronto, Ontario
May - September 1995 Keeping Our Stories Alive:
An Exhibition of the Art and Crafts
from Dene and Inuit of Canada
Institute of American Indian Arts Museum
Santa Fe, New Mexico, U.S.A.
(illustrated catalogue)
November 1995 - January 1996
Qiviuq: A Legend in Art
Carleton University Art Gallery
Ottawa, Ontario
February 1996 The Spirit World - 1977 to 1990: Baker Lake
Clyde River and Pangnirtung Prints.
A retrospective collection exhibited at
selected commercial galleries, organized by
Canadian Arctic Producers
Winnipeg, Manitoba
(illustrated catalogue)
SOLO EXHIBITIONS:
October 1973 Wallhangings: Embroidered and Appliqued:
by Ahvalakiak of Baker Lake
The Innuit Gallery of Eskimo Art
Toronto, Ontario
January 1993 Wallhangings by Irene Avaalaaqiaq
Isaacs/Innuit Gallery
Toronto, Ontario
COLLECTIONS:
Agnes Etherington Art Centre, Queen's University, Kingston, Ontario
Amway Environmental Foundation Collection, Ada, Michigan, U.S.A.
CIBC Collection, Toronto, Ontario
Canadian Guild of Crafts Quebec, Montreal, Quebec
Canadian Museum of Civilization, Hull, Quebec
Confederation Centre of the Arts, Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island
Dennos Museum Center, Northwestern Michigan College, Traverse City, Michigan, U.S.A.
John and Mary Robertson Collection, Agnes Etherington Art Centre, Kingston, Ontario
Kitchener-Waterloo Art Gallery, Kitchener, Ontario
Klamer Family Collection, Art Gallery of Ontario, Toronto, Ontario
Macdonald Stewart Art Centre, Guelph, Ontario
McMaster University Art Gallery, Hamilton, Ontario
McMichael Canadian Art Collection, Kleinburg, Ontario
Mendel Art Gallery, Saskatoon, Saskatchewan
Musee des beaux-arts de Montreal, Montreal, Quebec
Museum of Anthropology, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, British Columbia
National Gallery of Canada, Ottawa, Ontario
Prince of Wales Northern Heritage Centre, Yellowknife, Northwest Territories
University of Alberta, Edmonton, Alberta
University of Lethbridge Art Gallery, Lethbridge, Alberta
University of New Brunswick, Fredericton, New Brunswick
Winnipeg Art Gallery, Winnipeg, Manitoba
HONOURS, ACHIEVEMENTS and EVENTS:
1965 Participated in an experimental graphic workshop in Baker Lake (unpublished).
1973 Received a Canada Council travel grant to attend the opening of her first
solo exhibition at the Innuit Gallery of Eskimo Art in Toronto.
1976 Commissioned by Public Works Canada to create two wallhangings for post
offices in Ilderton and Wyoming, Ontario.
1979 A wallhanging by Avaalaaqiaq was presented to the State of Minnesota by the
Canadian Ambassador to the U.S.A. and now hangs in the State Legislature in
Minneapolis.
1980 Travelled to Winnipeg to attend the official opening of the 1980 Baker Lake
print collection.
1988 Attended the gala opening of the new National Gallery of Canada in Ottawa.
1993 Tied for third prize in the wall hanging competition at the Keewatin Arts and
Crafts Festival.
1993 Attended the opening of the Northern Lights exhibit in Baltimore, where she
spoke about her life and work as well as demonstrating embroidery and applique
techniques.
SELECTED REFERENCES:
IM SCHATTEN DER SONNE: Zeitgenoessische Kunst der Indianer und
Eskimos in Kanada. [In the Shadow of the Sun: Contemporary Art
of the Indians and Eskimos in Canada]. Stuttgart: Edition
Cantz. Ottawa: Canadian Museum of Civilization, 1988.
Blodgett, Jean
GRASP TIGHT THE OLD WAYS: Selections from the Klamer Family
Collection of Inuit Art. Toronto: Art Gallery of Ontario, 1983.
Brown, Deborah, and Mary Jo Hughes Genosko
COLLECTING INUIT ART -- SHIFTING PERCEPTIONS: By Deborah Brown
and Mary Jo Hughes Genosko. Kingston: Agnes Etherington Art
Centre, 1989.
Burland, Cottie
ESKIMO ART. London: The Hamlyn Publishing Group, 1973.
Butler, Sheila
WALL HANGINGS FROM BAKER LAKE. The Beaver, Autumn, 1972.
pp.26-31.
Canadian Arctic Producers
EXHIBITION OF WALL HANGINGS BY AHVALAKIAK OF BAKER LAKE. CAP
Newsletter, September 1973. p.3.
Canadian Arctic Producers
KEEWATIN WALLHANGINGS. Ottawa: Canadian Arctic Producers, 1979.
Fernstrom, Katharine W. and Anita E. Jones
NORTHERN LIGHTS: Inuit Textile Art from the Canadian Arctic.
Baltimore, Md.: Baltimore Museum of Art, 1993.
Hassler, Gitta
KUNST AUS DER ARKTIS: GRAPHIKEN DER INUIT IN KANADA. Zurich:
Volkerkundmuseum der Universitat Zurich, 1994.
Institute of American Indian Arts Museum
KEEPING OUR STORIES ALIVE: An Exhibition of Art and Crafts from
Dene and Inuit of Canada. Santa Fe, N.M.: Institute of American
Native Arts Museum, 1995.
Jackson, Marion E.
CONTEMPORARY INUIT DRAWINGS. Guelph, Ontario: Macdonald Stewart
Art Centre, 1987.
Jordan, Betty Ann
IRENE AVAALIAQ. In: Canadian Art, vol. 11, no. 3, Fall 1994,
pp. 108-111.
Lipton, Barbara
ARCTIC VISION: Art of the Canadian Inuit. Ottawa : Canadian
Arctic Producers, 1984.
Mills, James
TWO ESKIMO ART EXHIBITS A RARE OCCURRENCE. Denver Post,
February 8, 1976.
Muehlen, Maria
BAKER LAKE WALL-HANGINGS: Starting from Scraps. Inuit Art
Quarterly, vol. 4, no. 2, Spring, 1989. pp.6-11.
Muehlen, Maria
SOME RECENT WORK BY WOMEN OF BAKER LAKE. Inuit Art Quarterly,
vol. 7, no.3, Summer/Fall, 1992, pp. 30-35.
Muscarelle Museum of Art (Williamsburg)
CONTEMPORARY INUIT DRAWINGS: The gift collection of Frederick
and Lucy S. Herman. Williamsburg, Va.: The College of William
and Mary in Virginia, 1993.
Musee des Beaux-Arts (Arras, France)
INUK, INUIT: Art et tradition chez les Esquimaux d'hier et
d'aujourd'hui. Arras, France: Musee des Beaux-Arts, 1987.
National Museum of Man
THE INUIT PRINT = L'ESTAMPE INUIT: A Travelling Exhibition... =
Une exposition itinerante... Ottawa: National Museum of Man,
National Museums of Canada, 1977.
Oxorn, Pearl
AESTHETICS OF ESKIMO ART: Comparison with Other Cultures and
Visual Elements of Style. (Part I). Arts & Culture of the
North, vol. 5, no. 1, Winter, 1980. pp.291-295.
Verona. Galleria d'Arte Moderna e Contemporanea
IMMAGINARIO INUIT: ARTE E CULTURA DEGLI ESQUIMESICANADESI.
Commune di Verona: Galleria d'Arte Moderna e Contemporanea di
Palazzo Forti, 1995.
Vision Planetaire
NOUVEAUX TERRITOIRES: 350/500 ANS APRES: Une exposition d'art
aborigene contemporain du Canada. Montreal: Vision Planetaire:
Ville de Montreal: UNESCO, 1992.
Whitton, Elizabeth
THE BAKER LAKE ESKIMO AND THEIR NEEDLECRAFT. [Manuscript,
c.1972].
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