Join us on Saturday, October 23rd between 1pm and 4pm for the opening of this exhibition.
Renowned for jewellery designs that sing of Nunavummiut experiences, Mathew Nuqingaq has helped make Inuit jewellery an art form as recognizable as stone carving or print making beyond Canada, across the continents. Mathew Nuqingaq's sculptural depiction of animals and everyday objects lays down the tracks on which his love for the playful and poetic aspects of their natures glides, his love enriching our understanding.
Mathew Nuqingaq grew up in Broughton Island, but now lives in Iqaluit. He started making jewellery in the mid 1990’s when he decided to register for an evening course at Arctic College, and received his Jewellery and Metalwork Diploma in 1999. Mathew works part time for NACA and is also on the advisory committee for Canada Council and Secretary/Treasurer for the Inuit Art Foundation.
Emerging jeweller Lavinia van Heuvelen moved to Iqaluit after high school where she attended Nunavut Arctic College to pursue Jewellery and Metalwork. Shortly after she began Lavinia Van Heuvelen's Jewellery and became a full time jeweller. Van Heuvelen works primarily with sterling silver and natural materials, which are gifted and purchased from local hunters with much of her jewellery directly references traditional Inuit themes and imagery. Van Heuvelen has travelled around Canada and to London, England exhibiting and selling her pieces.
Kaajuk Kablalik (b. 1979) is a multidisciplinary artist from Rankin Inlet, Nunavut Canada. He has been practicing his art since 2009, and full time since 2016. Kaajuk uses fused glass, soft metals and natural materials such as ivory, baleen, muskox horn and walrus whiskers to create jewelry and art that reflect inuusiq. He is a graduate of Nunavut Arctic College Jewelry and Metal work program and winner of the 2010 BMO First Arts! Award. He is one of three artists who created the public art exhibition SIVUINKSATTINU, currently hosted by the Ottawa Hospital. Kaajuk is an active member of the urban Inuit community in Ontario, volunteering and advocating for Inuit-specific programs and resources. He is currently based in the Ottawa Valley.