(c) Scott Polar Research Institute

Inuit art masterworks from the Arctic

Wed 2 June 2010 - Fri 10 September 2010

The Polar Museum

Two Inuit artists have been invited to Cambridge to celebrate a new exhibition of Inuit Art to be held at the University of Cambridge’s Polar Museum at the Scott Polar Research Institute from June 2.

Drawing together artworks held in both private and public British collections, the exhibition - Inuit Art: Masterworks from the Arctic - will examine an artistic movement that has only become established in its own right during the past few decades.

As part of the exhibition, two internationally renowned Inuit artists (printmaker Andrew Qappik and sculptor Palaya Qiatsuq) have been invited to work in Cambridge, where members of the public can see them creating new works.

Heather Lane, Keeper of Collections at the Scott Polar Research Institute, said: “We’re very proud to present this exhibition – the first time that many of the works from private collections have been shown to the public. Inuit art is a genre that very few people in this country, or Europe, have had the opportunity to examine in any real detail – until now.

“We are delighted to be able to welcome these internationally acclaimed artists to work with us in Cambridge. We hope that they will bring an extra dimension to the exhibition at the Polar Museum and are grateful to NACA in Canada – and to the Narwhal Inuit Art Education Foundation in London - for their help in making this visit possible.”

The exhibition is the result of a two-year, £200,000 Heritage Lottery Fund grant which enabled SPRI to acquire many new works of Inuit sculpture and graphic art, showcasing the range of styles from communities across the Canadian Arctic and Greenland. Added to SPRI’s existing collection and loans from private collectors across the UK, this will be the most comprehensive examination of the movement to date.

Qiatsuq and Qappik will work at the St Barnabas Press and Gallery (Belfast Yard, Coldhams Road) during their Cambridge residency.

A simultaneous exhibition will also be presented at Canada House in London (Sananguaq: Inuit Art in Britain) with the kind permission of High Commissioner James R. Wright, who will also be guest of honour at the opening of the Cambridge exhibition.

Both exhibitions run from June 2 to September 10.

Cost: free