Making of a print-maker
Kimmirummiut working to develop their own print tradition
Casey Lessard
Northern News Services
Monday, April 13, 2015
KIMMIRUT/LAKE HARBOUR
Cape Dorset and Pangnirtung are known for their print shops, and if Jenn Robins gets her way, perhaps Kimmirut and other Nunavut hamlets will be similarly famous one day.
The B.C. woman recently completed the second of a series of workshops to build print-making capacity in the communities.
"The part I play is I'm there to provide supplies, to show how the materials are used to get results from their own creative style," Robins said, explaining that Pond Inlet was the first location she ran such a workshop. Six people took part in the Kimmirut workshop.
"There's no tradition of this in Kimmirut because there are no supplies," she said. "We had a great group of people and decent attendance. There were some beautiful prints turned out."
The students follow the kappazuri style of Japanese print-making that Inuit have adapted in Cape Dorset and Pangnirtung to popular effect. Whereas the Japanese traditionally use watercolour, the Inuit tradition is to use oil-based inks. Unlike the other Nunavut locations, neither Kimmirut nor Pond Inlet has the facilities for stone-cutting, so stencils are used in the workshops as a starting point.
"The imagery that came out of this program was so incredibly diverse," she said. "Some people very much were looking back into more of the tradition, but then there were others that chose everyday things to do, things that are all around us, like coffee cups and spoons."
The workshop is designed to build skills for artists in the communities. The art form quickly proved to be lucrative in Kimmirut, with a post-workshop open house yielding print sales from fellow Kimmirummiut.
The class was partially funded by a project grant from the Department of Economic Development and Transportation.
Robins bought and shipped the supplies on her own dime, and used Aeroplan points to travel to the community, leaving her accommodations for two weeks as the only remaining expense.
The teacher also left supplies to help the artists continue creating work until a long-term plan for creating art can be determined.
"They have enough ink and paper for maybe another six months if they want to go ahead," said Kimmirut economic development officer Petanie Pitsiulak, who co-ordinated the workshop with Robins.
"The people that were in the class, many of them were very skilled in other art forms," Robins said.
"Definitely carvers, jewelry makers, so on. With this process, we made sure people will have a small amount in their homes to be able to continue on. But there is the hope that if there is a building available, they'll be able to at least meet.
"What I've found is that if people still come together to print, even on a once-in-a-while basis, it really does make for a good experience for everyone."
Pitsiulak hopes the school library, where the workshop was held, will be made available again once or twice a month for the artists to meet and continue to make art. Robins is looking to run the workshop in other communities in the future.
