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AUSUITTUQ/GRISE FIORD
Concerned her students had little to do after school in Grise Fiord, Umimmak School teacher Zuzanna Rasiewicz thought an art club would be a good way to engage them. She may have underestimated the interest.

Members of the newly-founded Umimmak School art club are experiencing early success as their work is in demand in Grise Fiord. From left, Nolan Kiguktak, Laurie Noah, and Samantha Killiktee are among those who meet for the Tuesday and Thursday after-school sessions. - photo courtesy of Zuzanna Rasiewicz

"It's like they fight to come," said Rasiewicz, who teaches kindergarten to Grade 6, noting she can only accommodate up to six per session. "They really want to (participate). Just to see kids doing nothing outside, and I know their potential, I was thinking to come up with something they would like that was different."

Each Tuesday and Thursday, since school has started, Rasiewicz gathers supplies and trains her club members in Inuit art, with guidance from local artists and those she has met in her career teaching elsewhere in Nunavut. The students are already learning first-hand that their art – they're starting with prints – could help them earn an income when they graduate.

In less than a month, the students' prints and cards have generated $200 of revenue for the club, which is remarkable considering each sells for $5.

"I've had some sales," said Grade 7 student Nolan Kiguktak. "It felt good."

Kiguktak said he enjoys the drawing aspect of the work, while classmate Laurie Noah prefers etching the image that gets transferred to the print.

"I just like cutting it up and putting the different colour on," Noah said, adding the work has earned favourable reviews. "(People) say it's nice. They really like it."

Samantha Killiktee joined because she likes to draw, paint and make prints.

"We use different colours and different coloured paper so they look different each time," she said, noting her print subjects have included a seal, a walrus, and an inuksuk. She prefers to use black ink on brightly coloured paper. "I like printing, but I'm not sure if it would be a full-time thing. More like a hobby."

It's a realistic prospect for the budding artists, who can follow the lead of adults working in their community.

"They were impressed that you could work at the hamlet, but after hours sell your art all over Canada and internationally," Rasiewicz said. As an example, she cites Grise Fiord artist Looty Pijamini, who has worked with the students after returning from carving assignments in Iqaluit and Siberia this summer.

The school kick-started the club by funding supplies, and Rasiewicz said the revenue from the print sales will be used to benefit the students and to buy more supplies. Soon, the students will branch out into carvings, paintings, and gifts, as the holidays approach.

"I would like people to know these kids are awesome in whatever they do and art is one of the things they do," she said.

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