Laura Power
Northern News Services
Published Friday, December 21, 2007

YELLOWKNIFE - I remember my first time stepping into the Ashoona family's studio and gallery in Old Town for an interview.

Bob Kussy carves a whalebone ornament at the Ashoona Family studio in Old Town. - Laura Power/NNSL photo Laura Power carved a whale bone ornament at the Ashoona Family studio in Old Town. - Natalie Dunleavy/NNSL photo

Bob Kussy was working on some whalebone carvings and I guess I got a bit too close to the work in progress. I breathed in the dusty air and tasted whalebone, returning to the office with a dry tongue and a grimace on my face.

On Wednesday, with a mask over my mouth and nose, I went back again. This time, it was for the chance to sit on his chair and see how he, his family (the Ashoonas) and some others who use the space create the dazzling traditional artwork on display.

Recently I noticed their Christmas tree, adorned with ornaments made of whalebone. Kussy said there are a number of these ornaments in homes around Yellowknife and in the homes of families and friends. I asked why people might prefer these to ornaments bought at Wal-Mart.

"The answer's real simple - it's Christmas," he said.

He reminded me of how every year at Christmas, children with their families go through the decorations collected over the years - just like I did.

"Everything that goes on that tree is special to that family," he said.

Kussy, who created many ornaments out of bone this season, kindly agreed to guide me through the making of one of these interesting carvings.

He said he began making whalebone ornaments about 12 years ago, and his experience was obvious when he started drilling shapes into the bone. He did it, frankly, with about the same amount of ease I have when drawing a stick man.

"You have to have the right bits to do this effectively," he said as he switched from tip to tip at the end of the drill, carving the faces of a mother and two children into a flat, round piece of beluga bone.

"You can really breathe some life into what you're doing... it's all about animating."

Feeling full of holiday sap, and knowing I would end up sending this piece back to my family - I thought it would be nice to carve the faces of a mother and daughter into my piece, which turned out to be a piece of backbone from near a beluga's head.

"Almost all of our ornaments are beluga bones," said Kussy. "It's the vertebrae that are used the most."

Though it only took him about a half-hour to finish the demo ornament, which was carved on both sides, I managed to take up more than an hour of his time on two little faces that don't even look remotely like my mother and me.

But he said I did really well - better, in fact, than 90 per cent of the folks who try it there - and I felt pretty good about that. With Bob by my side working whalebone and Kuzi behind me creating another one of his brilliant polar bear carvings, it was like hanging out with the cool kids.