Review: SakKijâjuk: Art and Craft from Nunatsiavut at the AGNS

Chesley Flowers, The George River Herd (1995-1996), Wood and antler. 121.92 x 121.92 cm. The Rooms Provincial Art Gallery, Memorial University Collection. Credit: Ned Pratt Photography via artgalleryofnovascotia.ca

As new seasons of television shows like Game of Thrones and Letterkenney bring wintery landscapes to our summer programming, so too does the AGNS’s summer exhibition SakKijâjuk: Art and Craft from Nunatsiavut.

Showcasing the work of 47 artists from Northern Labrador, the show is divided into four categories: Elders, Trailblazers, Fire Keepers and the Next Generation. From Jennie Williams’ photographs reminiscent of horror film stills to Maria Merkuratsuk’s scarlet sealskin, the work in this exceptional show spans generations and challenges many southern expectations of Inuit art.
The work of Nunatsiavummiut artists has long been left out of broader conversations of Inuit art, making this the first exhibition of its scale to showcase the work of makers and artists from Northern Labrador.

SakKijâjuk, which means “to see” in the region’s dialect of Inuktitut, highlights the rich and distinct visual traditions in Nunatsiavut and explores the diversity of the region’s contemporary art.