Jillian Dickens
Northern News Services

Iqaluit (Sep 12/05) - There was panic, there was content, but most of all there was pride last Friday as Nunavut Arts Festival organizers and artists took down and packed up artwork after a week of unbelievable success.

The sixth annual festival attracted more artists, browsers and shoppers than any of the past five festivals.

And the membership count for the Arts and Crafts Association, which organized the event, near doubled from 350 members last year to 600 members this year.

There were 20 artists from Iqaluit and 40 artists from other Nunavut communities. As far as the visitor count, it's too early to tell.

"It's quite a number," said Ame Papatsie, assistant organizer and chair of the association.

"There were cruise ships, military ships, and conferences for bureaucrats from all across Canada in town throughout the week so the turnout was really good."

Past festivals have been held in Rankin Inlet and Cambridge Bay, but due to lack of facilities for artists and huge travel expenses, Iqaluit was deemed a better location for the event.

And it worked out well, says Papatsie.

"The artists are comfortable here. And there is more potential for recognition, sales and clients."

Effie dollmaker Gwen Tikhak from Cambridge Bay couldn't agree more. Her dolls were so popular she was forced to sew like mad to keep up with the demand. She even has a back order of 120 dolls.

"This was a great experience because I got to meet the people, the artists, see the inventory and hear the different languages of the regions," said Tikhak. "This was my first arts festival and I enjoyed the whole week so much."

She says although she's from Cambridge Bay, she prefers the festival in Iqaluit because it is more central and therefore more people come, sales increase and the experience broadens.

Papatsie says the location isn't the only reason for the success.

The success in the art world in general, and specifically the festival, is due to increased advocacy, lobbying, more artists seeking funding and speaking about reoccurring problems in the art industry and increased art demand from the outside world, he says.