Yumimi Pang
Northern News Services
Published Monday, June 23, 2008

IQALUIT - Fashionable fur never looked so good.

The inaugural year of Nunavut Arctic College's Fur Production and Design Program wrapped up with an inspired open house on May 30 ranging from sealskin full-length gowns to luxurious coats.

Eleanore Arreak, 22, is one of 10 students in the program and proudly displayed her sealskin dress, with detail inspired by the Arctic Ocean, along with black puffed sleeves and a trendy silver colour.

"It's for anybody under 35. Youth would like it, Inuit youth or anybody proud of who they are," said Arreak, who is from Pond Inlet.

Arreak, who has been sewing since she was four, said she has learned a lot through the program, including patience and working with people. Arreak has begun to master the art of blending the traditional and the contemporary. She recognizes that sealskin can be a contentious issue but said, "It's important for Inuit women to step up and fight for our culture."

Arreak plans to move to Arviat and work with Kiluk Ltd., a company specializing in handcrafted clothing.

One of Arreak's classmates is Karliin Aariak, 29, who decided to enrol in the program to provide her young daughter with some of the experiences she had with her grandmother.

"I want her to grow up with the same experiences, culture and tradition," said Aariak, who used to watch her grandmother prepare and work with skins.

Aariak created a sealskin vest as her final project.

"I wanted to create something that had a touch of culture but was pretty up to date and modern," she said.

She chose a blue inner lining to represent the colour of traditional Inuit tattoos and incorporated the shape of an amauti into the vest design.

Although the program is only in its first year, the unquestionable talent of its students are already being acknowledged on a national scale.

Students Rosalind Machmer and Meeka Kilabuk took home accolades for fur design at the North American Fur & Fashion Exposition in Montreal, the largest fashion industry show in Canada.

Kilabuk's design of a sealskin coat featuring beaver trim and shoulder features of raccoon tail won big and she already has seven orders for the coat, with each one selling for up to $10,000.

She considers the Fur Production and Design Program a tool to get back what she missed from being separated from her culture and traditions in her residential school years.

Kilabuk, who is skilled in other crafts including handwriting, printing and beading, said she sees the need for the fur program.

"The skills are needed. A lot of traditional skills a lot of times are not available unless our own family provides them. Skills should be kept especially this (way), taught both traditional as well as contemporary," said Kilabuk.

The program provides a mix of traditional and contemporary, with the first six months of the program devoted to giving students an introduction to the traditional ways of working with fur including making kamiiks, mitts and hats. Instructor Diane Giroux helped harness the immense knowledge and traditional skill of Inuit women and provide the class with a contemporary skillset.

The women in the program learned all the basics of fashion design including how to draw and transpose an idea from their minds onto paper and incorporated new techniques and fabrics.

"I've been impressed by the creativity and ability to work (in Nunavut)," said Giroux, who is a designer with experience in Asia.

The program, unique in Canada because it focuses solely on fur, has been a runaway success with its students, several of whom plan to return for the program's second year, which will delve further into technical work and business skills like marketing and costing.

Giroux acknowledged that some are wary of the seal industry.

"The seal industry in Canada has suffered a lot," she said. "A lot of misinformation has been spread and it has influenced the minds of people."

Still, Giroux added that she sees the seal industry regaining popularity, and noted it is already doing well in Asia and Russia.

"It will come back, and we need to be ready," said Giroux.