by Nancy Gardiner
Northern News Services

NNSL (Dec 22/97) - They put in their once-a-year order in the spring to ensure their supplies make the sealift.

"It's good for heavy supplies such as clay," says Jane Fergusson, a Pangnirtung Art and English teacher whose classes are helping young students put their creativity to the test.

She teaches art to children in grades 10 to 12, but some years she also teaches grades four to nine, depending upon schedules. Her classes vary between 20 to 25 students but can go as high as 35.

Colin Kilabuk, who is in Grade 10 this year, enjoyed art so much, he asked if he could buy his own supplies and work at home. He also obtained permission from local printmakers to work alongside them with acrylics.

"Colin is getting advice from print-makers and we provide him with a place to work," says Geoff Ryan, general manager of Uqqurmiut Centre for Arts and Crafts in Pangnirtung.

Fergusson says that the community has a strong artistic tradition where "the print shop, weave shop and carvers have always been there (for the students) and a lot of artists visit because of the beautiful scenery so they've always had role models."

The art room is a large portable, with big windows and a loft where some like to work independently or in small groups. "It's kind of a treat to work upstairs, overlooking the fiord. Someone told me the portable was shipped up to Pangnirtung by mistake -- it was supposed to go to Broughton. It's half a large house," Fergusson notes.

Parents, she adds, take pride in their children's paintings too.

"One thing that made me happy (was) we did parent-teacher interviews differently. We went to the parents houses and I noticed students' artwork on the walls and that made me very happy."

Subject matter, Fergusson says varies, with some painting scenery, "some paint ski-doos. Others dabble in cartooning or traditional Inuit pictures. All different things come out. I expose them to a lot of things."

"One student, Theresa Alikatuktuk painted a portrait of Susan Aglukark. When Susan came to sing, she had Susan sign her portrait. Students paint hockey players, mountains, traditional Inuit pictures, flowers, polar bears, eagles and seals."

"We do murals for Christmas concerts and they want as many decorations as possible every year, so the students make their own design on an overhead (projector) and project it on a wall, then paint it.

"We also do graduation. Sheena Machmar last year designed a graduation mural with all the students' names, put it on an overhead and projected it onto large paper and did it all by herself."

One student, James Mearns, had such a natural talent for cartooning that Fergusson made use of some new cartooning books to help get him producing.

"With him drawing cartoons and the books, a lot of students got interested in cartooning, so that was very interesting."

While Fergusson enjoys teaching all media, her favorite classes are painting. Fergusson herself enjoys painting with oils, and had an art show in Oakville where 40 of her paintings adorned the walls.

"I did figure work, still life and mostly expressionist landscapes -- the most that sold were the Pangnirtung fiord." Fergusson, who was born in Montreal and raised in Winnipeg has always been drawing since she was a child and she always liked to paint. "It's part of my life." In summers, she travels for further training or on painting trips. So far, she's been to Bali, France, the Banff Centre for Fine Arts, Atlin, B.C., Sheridan College in Ont. and college in Red Deer, Alta. during her summer sojourns. Fergusson has been teaching in Pangnirtung for the past six years but she studied at the University of Guelph for her Fine Arts degree, then took teachers' training at Lakehead University.

In the summer, lot of painters visit as well as people interested in the weave and print shops. And the students have all worked with the Pangnirtung printmakers.

"One of the nurses, Rachel, came up visiting her cousin. She was a professional potter. She came up and volunteered to spend a week in my classroom teaching with a potters wheel this fall."

The children are exposed to a full range of choices. They learn sketching, plaster strip mask-making, acrylic painting, clay work, plaster carving, murals and lino printmaking. They make candles, learn leather crafting and color theory.

"Some years we get a grant to buy canvas boards and acrylics, then we have an art show with the kids' work. The children like all forms of art but they like a variety," says Fergusson.

There's been other support over the years too. "In the past the local district education council was generous and gave us money to work at the print shop. Also, the Baffin school board has given grants for a school art show," says Fergusson.