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KIVALLIQ - The traditional way of Inuit life in the Kivalliq will be recorded in an upcoming book by Canadian artist Gerald Kuehl.

Kuehl, 52, is a self-taught pencil artist who grew up in Pinawa, Man., and has been drawing seriously for the past 21 years.

He began his Portraits of the North First Nations collection in 1997 and his travels took him further north.

He landed in Rankin Inlet in July 2002 and began the second stage of his vision, Portraits of the Far North.

Kuehl said he sees Inuit elders as people who grew up during a time when survival depended exclusively on their skills as hunters.

He looks at them as having lived nomadic existences, battling nature in the most hostile environment in the world.

While that way of life is now virtually extinct, many of the people and their stories remain.

Kuehl said he became truly inspired when he began drawing indigenous people.

He comes to a community, photographs and interviews elders, then returns to Winnipeg to work his magic.

"I was in Chesterfield Inlet twice this past year and when I came back earlier this month, I talked to the hamlet about purchasing the artwork for the community and the elders, and our talk seemed to go very well," said Kuehl.

"I don't ask the hamlets to purchase my original drawings, but prints, which has been done in Baker Lake and Whale Cove so far.

"I'm optimistic things will also work out in Repulse Bay and Arviat because they're very keen on my work."

Kuehl said he finds Inuit to be very keen on promoting and recording their elders' information.

He's drawn eight elders from Chester and hopes to do two or three more.

Kuehl will travel to the only Kivalliq community he's yet to visit this coming week - Coral Harbour.

"This has been a long, time-consuming process.

"The photos only take five to 10 minutes, but one drawing can take a month to complete.

"But that's the effort I have to put in to get the quality I want, so I'm not complaining."

Kuehl hopes to sell his original work in complete community collections, not individually, to collectors.

He said that would be a waste because the works are unique in terms of their heritage and cultural value.

"I'd like to think each and every one is well drawn, but the point is to have them presented as a cultural entity.

"I'm asked to sell one or two by private collectors all the time, but I haven't sold one that way in 10 years and I have no intention of doing it now.

"I'd like to see them purchased by a national gallery, but, however it all works out, I won't part with the originals until I know they're going to a home I'm satisfied with."

Kuehl said interviewing elders plays a big part in the creative process.

He said it's hard to put your heart and soul into a drawing if you don't know the individual.

"Each drawing averages between 80 to 100 hours, so, to maintain my enthusiasm during the process, it helps me to have a written record of my subjects' lives.

"It helps me to get an understanding of the individual and put more effort into the drawing.

"I have great respect for the elders because they're the last generation of people to live on the land.

"That also translates into the final drawings when I hear their stories."

Kuehl said he's always moved to see an elder presented with a framed reproduction of his work.

He said he's also proud of the travelling Portraits of the North exhibit the Manitoba Museum has been involved with during the past three years.

"That's 30 portraits of Inuit, Metis and First Nations that's been all-over Manitoba, as well as the St. Albert Museum in Alberta and Red Lake, Ont.

"It's going to be shown at the St. Catharines Museum in Ontario this coming November.

"The response is always tremendous because it's like a bridge between all the cultures out there.

"Whether they're from Canada or wherever, it's a wonderful feeling when I hear people say how they understand indigenous people more after seeing my work."

Kuehl expects to finish his Coral elders in about two years and, at that time, will have completed about 90 portraits of Kivalliq elders.

He will then put them all into a book, with the biographies on one side and the images on the other.