LUCY TASSEOR TUTSWEETOK (TUCKSWEETUK; TASSEOR; TASIUK; TASSUITNAK;
TUTSUITUK; TUKSWEETTOK; TASIAK)
Born: 1934 D: 2012 Female E1-135
Place of Birth: Nunalla, Manitoba
Resided: Arviat
Sculpture
"Lucy Tasseor Tutsweetok was born just south of the N.W.T. border in
Nunalla, Manitoba in 1934. After her father's death Tasseor lived with her
grandparents in and around Nunalla and Churchill. Tasseor married Richard
Tutsweetok in Rankin Inlet in 1960, and moved to Arviat, N.W.T. soon after.
She began carving in the early 1960s.
Tasseor drew inspiration from the memories of sand drawings that she and
her grandfather (whom she considers to be the greatest influence on her life)
had made when she was a child. Her sculptures, representing mothers and
children or family groups, are carved in a semi-abstract style in which the
human figure is rarely defined. Tasseor works the stone very sparingly,
leaving large undulating surfaces uncarved, decorated with incised drawings.
For Tasseor, a flat stone plane has as much expressive power as a face.
Human subjects are suggested by faces, arms and legs that emerge from the
stone, often only along the edges of the carving. Subtle variations in the
positioning or expression of heads and faces provide clues to understanding
the meaning of specific sculptures. Tasseor herself assigns very specific
meanings or moods to each of her works."
Ingo Hessel, from
Visions of Power 1991
EXHIBITIONS:
June - July 1970 Sculpture
Canadian Eskimo Arts Council
a competition/exhibition organized as
a contribution to the Centennial of the
N.W.T.
Yellowknife, Northwest Territories
(illustrated catalogue)
1971 - 1973 Sculpture/Inuit: Masterworks of the
Canadian Arctic
Canadian Eskimo Arts Council
Ottawa, Ontario
(tour)
(illustrated catalogue)
February - March 1972 Eskimo Sculpture: Selections from the
Twomey Collection
Winnipeg Art Gallery
Winnipeg, Manitoba
(illustrated catalogue)
1973 Eskimo Sculpture
Central Ontario Exhibition
Kitchener, Ontario
Dec 1973 - Jan 1974 Les Eskimos/De Eskimo's
Studio 44 - Passage 44
Brussels, Belgium
(illustrated catalogue)
December 1975 The Art of Eskimo Women: in
Sculpture, Prints, Wall-hangings
The Arctic Circle
Los Angeles, California, U.S.A.
March - July 1976 The Mulders' Collection of Eskimo Sculpture
Winnipeg Art Gallery
Winnipeg, Manitoba
(illustrated catalogue)
March 1977 Eskimo Point Sculpture: Stone & Bone
The Innuit Gallery of Eskimo Art
Toronto, Ontario
March - April 1979 Sculpture of the Inuit: Lorne Balshine
Collection/Lou Osipov Collection/
Dr. Harry Winrob Collection
Surrey Art Gallery
Surrey, British Columbia
(illustrated catalogue)
October 1979 Sculpture of the Inuit: Masterwork
Exhibitors of the Canadian Arctic
Inuit Gallery of Vancouver
Vancouver, British Columbia
(illustrated catalogue)
July - September 1982 Eskimo Point/Arviat
Winnipeg Art Gallery
Winnipeg, Manitoba
(illustrated catalogue)
September 1982 Eskimo Point
Inuit Gallery of Vancouver
Vancouver, British Columbia
Oct - Nov 1982 Inuit Sculpture 1982
The Raven Gallery
Minneapolis, Minnesota, U.S.A.
(illustrated catalogue)
May 1983 - April 1985 Grasp Tight the Old Ways: Selections from
the Klamer Family Collection of Inuit Art
Art Gallery of Ontario
Toronto, Ontario
(tour)
(illustrated catalogue)
October 1985 Our Hoods are Full
Arctic Artistry
Hartsdale, New York, U.S.A.
October 1985 Early Eskimo Sculpture
Arctic Artistry
Hartsdale, New York, U.S.A.
Mar 1986 - Mar 1987 Pure Vision: The Keewatin Spirit
Norman McKenzie Art Gallery
Regina, Saskatchewan
(tour)
(illustrated catalogue)
July - August 1986 Keewatin Sculpture: Reflections of
the Spirit
Inuit Gallery of Vancouver
Vancouver, British Columbia
(illustrated catalogue)
April 1987 Rugged and Profound - Sculpture from
Eskimo Point
The Innuit Gallery of Eskimo Art
Toronto, Ontario
(illustrated brochure)
Sept - Nov 1987 The Swinton Collection of Inuit Art
Winnipeg Art Gallery
Winnipeg, Manitoba
(illustrated catalogue)
Dec 1987 - Feb 1988 Inuk, Inuit: Art et tradition chez les
esquimaux d'hier et d'aujourd'hui
presented by L'Iglou Art Esquimau, Douai,
at Musee des Beaux-arts d'Arras
Arras, France
(illustrated catalogue)
October 1988 Tundra & Ice: Stone Images of
Animals and Man
presented by Orca Aart at the
Adventurers' Club
Chicago, Illinois
November 1988 Primitive Art from the Arctic
Arctic Artistry
Hartsdale, New York, U.S.A.
Nov - Dec 1988 [Inuit Art Exhibition]
Orca Aart, presented at
Neiman Marcus
Chicago, Illinois, U.S.A.
Nov - Dec 1988 Art of the Eskimo: Contemporary Sculpture &
Drawings from the Canadian Arctic
Gallery 100 Hudson
New York, New York, U.S.A.
December 1988 - 1989 Im Schatten der Sonne:Zeitgenossische Kunst
der Indianer und Eskimos in Kanada/In the
Shadow of the Sun:Contemporary Indian and Inuit
Art in Canada
Canadian Museum of Civilization
Ottawa, Ontario
(tour)
(illustrated catalogue)
February - March 1989 [L'art inuit]
Presented by l'Iglou Art Esquimau, Douai
at St. Marcellin
France
March - April 1989 [L'art inuit]
Presented by l'Iglou Art Esquimau, Douai
at Palais de l'Europe, le Touquet
France
August 1989 Arviat: Eskimo Point
Marion Scott Gallery
Vancouver, British Columbia
(illustrated catalogue)
August 1989 Art Inuit, la Sculpture des Esquimaux
du Canada
Presented by l'Iglou Art Esquimau, Douai
at Chapelle de la Visitation,
Thonon
France
October 1989 Art Inuit, Sculpture des Esquimaux
du Canada
Presented by l'Iglou Art Esquimau, Douai
at Galerie La Poutre, Marseille
France
December 1989 Art Inuit, la Sculpture des Esquimaux du Canada
Presented by l'Iglou Art Esquimau, Douai
at Les Chiroux, Centre Culturel de la Wallonie,
Liege
Belgium
Dec 1989 - Apr 1990 The Stone Sculpture of Arviat
McMichael Canadian Art Collection
Kleinburg, Ontario
January 1990 Art Inuit, la Sculpture des Esquimaux du Canada
Presented by l'Iglou Art Esquimau, Douai
at Centre d'Action Culturelle du Bassin
Houllier, Lorrain, Saint Avold
France
February - March 1990 Beeldhouwkunst van de Inuit (Canada)
by l'Iglou Art Esquimau, Douai, France
at Amphora Finippon pvba, Sint Andries,
Brugge, Belgium
March 1990 Art Inuit, l'Art des Esquimaux du Canada
Presented by l'Iglou Art Esquimau, Douai
at Maison Falleur, Cambrai
France
April 1990 Art Inuit
Presented by l'Iglou Art Esquimau, Douai
at Palais de l'Europe
Le Touquet, France
July 1990 Art Inuit
Presented by l'Iglou Art Esquimau, Douai
at Thonon les Bains
France
Oct - Nov 1990 A Woman's Vision
Art Space Gallery
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, U.S.A.
November 1990 Inuit Masterworks
Inuit Gallery of Vancouver
Vancouver, British Columbia
(illustrated catalogue)
November 1990 Art Inuit
Galerie Saint Merri
Paris, France
Nov - Dec 1990 Art Inuit: Autour de la Collection de Cape
Dorset 1990
Presented by l'Iglou Art Esquimau, Douai
at Centre Culturel Canadien
Paris, France
Nov 1990 - Feb 1991 Espaces Inuit
Maison Hamel-Bruneau
Ste-Foy, Quebec
(illustrated catalogue)
February - June 1991 Granville Island Canadian Inuit Sculpture
Exhibition (first exhibition)
Vancouver Inuit Art Society
Vancouver, British Columbia
March - April 1991 Art Inuit
Presented by l'Iglou Art Esquimau, Douai
at Le Theatre
La Ciotat, France
April - May 1991 Art Inuit
Presented by l'Iglou Art Esquimau, Douai
at Palais de l'Europe
Le Touquet, France
May - June 1991 Art Inuit
Presented by l'Iglou Art Esquimau, Douai
at La Halle aux Bles
Saint Malo, France
June - July 1991 Visions of Power
presented by the Earth Spirit Festival at
York Quay Gallery and Leo Kamen Gallery
Toronto, Ontario
(illustrated catalogue)
June - September 1991 Granville Island Canadian Inuit Sculpture
Exhibition (second exhibition)
Vancouver Inuit Art Society
Vancouver, British Columbia
July 1991 Art Inuit
Presented by l'Iglou Art Esquimau, Douai
at Chapelle de la Visitation
Thonon, France
July - August 1991 Glaciopolis: Art Inuit
Presented by l'Iglou Art Esquimau, Douai
at Maison de Pesey
Les Arcs, France
Oct - Dec 1991 Art Inuit
Presented by l'Iglou Art Esquimau, Douai
at Galerie Maite Aubert
Le Havre, France
February - April 1992 Art Inuit
Presented by l'Iglou Art Esquimau, Douai
at Galerie Montador
Dieppe, France
Feb - Sept 1992 Inuit Art: Drawings and Recent Sculpture
National Gallery of Canada
Ottawa, Ontario
April - May 1992 [Inuit art]
Galerie Saint Merri
Paris, France
April - May 1992 Salon International Europ'art '92
presented by Galerie Saint Merri
Geneva, Switzerland
April - October 1992 Indigena:
Contemporary Native Perspectives
Canadian Museum of Civilization
Hull, Quebec
(tour)
(illustrated catalogue)
May 1992 Our Hoods Are Full
Arctic Artistry
Hastings-on-Hudson, New York, U.S.A.
May - June 1992 3rd Salon Printemps
presented by Galerie Saint Merri
Reims, France
June - July 1992 Women of the North: An Exhibition
of art by Inuit Women of the
Canadian Arctic
Marion Scott Gallery
Vancouver, British Columbia
(illustrated catalogue)
June - October 1992 Nouveau Territoires...
350/500 Ans Apres, Presented at les maisons
de la culture Cote-des-Neiges, Notre-Dame-
de-Grace, and Rosemont-Petite Patrie
Montreal Recreation and Community
Development Service and les Ateliers
Visions Planetaire
Montreal, Quebec
(tour)
(illustrated catalogue)
Sept - Oct 1992 Three Women of Arviat: Sculpture by Elizabeth
Nutaraluk, Lucy Tasseor and Joy Halluk
The Isaacs/Innuit Gallery
Toronto, Ontario
February 1993 Kunstwerke der Inuit
Presented by CreARTion, Eppstein
in conjunction with the annual meeting
of the Association of Canadian Studies
at the Hotel am Badersee
Grainau, Germany
Nov - Dec 1993 The Treasured Monument
Marion Scott Gallery
Vancouver, British Columbia
(illustrated catalogue)
1994 Kanuitpit? Kunst und Kulturen der Eskimo:
Eine Auswahl aus den Museumssammlungen
Staatliches Museum fur Volkerkunde
Munchen
Munich, Germany
(illustrated catalogue)
July 1994 Arctic Spirit
35 Years of Canadian Inuit Art
Frye Art Museum
Seattle, Washington, U.S.A.
August - October 1994 Inuit Art from the Canadian Arctic
Bayly Art Museum
University of Virginia
Charlottesville, Virginia, U.S.A.
November 1995 Inspiration
Four Decades of Sculpture
Marion Scott Gallery
Vancouver, British Columbia
(illustrated catalogue)
Nov - Dec 1995 Miniaturen
Inuit Galerie
Mannheim, Germany
(brochure)
Jan - Feb 1996 Not Just a Dancing Step...
Galerie D'Art Vincent
Ottawa, Ontario
(illustrated catalogue)
March - April 1996 Major/Minor
Marion Scott Gallery
Vancouver, British Columbia
COLLECTIONS:
Art Gallery of Ontario, Toronto, Ontario
Canadian Museum of Civilization, Hull, Quebec
Dennos Museum Center, Northwestern Michigan College, Traverse City, Michigan, U.S.A.
Inuit Cultural Institute, Rankin Inlet, Northwest Territories
Klamer Family Collection, Art Gallery of Ontario, Toronto, Ontario
McMichael Canadian Art Collection, Kleinburg, Ontario
Museum of Anthropology, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, British Columbia
National Gallery of Canada, Ottawa, Ontario
Prince of Wales Northern Heritage Centre, Yellowknife, Northwest Territories
Sarick Collection, Art Gallery of Ontario, Toronto, Ontario
Winnipeg Art Gallery, Winnipeg, Manitoba
HONOURS, ACHIEVEMENTS and EVENTS:
1973 Attended the opening of the exhibition 'Sculpture/Inuit: Masterworks
of the Canadian Arctic' in Philadelphia.
1988 Attended the gala opening of the new National Gallery of Canada in Ottawa.
1991 Commissioned by the Earth Spirit Festival to carve a piece for the Visions of
Power exhibition in Toronto.
1991 At the invitation of the Canadian Museum of Civilization, Tasseor spent two
weeks in Hull carving works for the CMC exhibition "Indigena". She attended
the opening of the show in April 1992.
SELECTED REFERENCES:
IM SCHATTEN DER SONNE: Zeitgenoessische Kunst der Indianer und
Eskimos in Kanada. [In the Shadow of the Sun: Contemporary Art
of the Indians and Eskimos in Canada]. Stuttgart: Edition
Cantz. Ottawa: Canadian Museum of Civilization, 1988.
Adamson, Arthur
THE SWINTON COLLECTION OF INUIT ART. Inuit Art Quarterly,
vol.3, no.1, Winter, 1988. pp.19-20.
Blodgett, Jean
GRASP TIGHT THE OLD WAYS: Selections from the Klamer Family
Collection of Inuit Art. Toronto: Art Gallery of Ontario, 1983.
Canada. Indian and Northern Affairs
CANADIAN INUIT SCULPTURE. Ottawa: Inuit Art Section, 1992.
Canada. Indian and Northern Affairs Canada
CANADIAN INUIT SCULPTURE = LA SCULPTURE INUIT CANADIENNE.
Ottawa: Indian and Northern Affairs Canada, 1988.
Canadian Eskimo Arts Council
SCULPTURE. Ottawa: Canadian Eskimo Arts Council, 1970.
Canadian Eskimo Arts Council
SCULPTURE/INUIT: Sculpture of the Inuit: masterworks of the
Canadian Arctic = La sculpture chez les Inuit: chefs-d'oeuvre de
l'Arctique canadien. Toronto: University of Toronto Press.
London: Aidan Ellis Publishing, 1971.
Gagnon, Louis
ESPACES INUIT: Dessins et Sculpture. Sainte-Foy, Quebec:
Maison Hamel-Bruneau, 1990.
Galerie d'art Vincent
NOT JUST A DANCING STEP = PLUS QU'UN PAS DE DANSE: An Inuit Art
Exhibition organized by Galerie d'art Vincent, Chateau Laurier,
Ottawa, Canada = Une exposition d'art Inuit... Ottawa: Galerie
d'art Vincent [1996].
Hessel, Ingo
ARVIAT STONE SCULPTURE: Born of the Struggle with an
Uncompromising Medium. Inuit Art Quarterly, vol. 5, no. 1,
Winter, 1990. pp.4-15.
Hessel, Ingo
LUCY TASSEOR TUTSWEETOK (1934-). In North American Women
Artists of the Twentieth Century: A Biographical Dictionary/
Garland, 1995.
Innuit Gallery of Eskimo Art
RUGGED AND PROFOUND: Sculpture from Eskimo Point. Toronto: The
Innuit Gallery of Eskimo Art, 1987.
Inuit Gallery of Vancouver
INUIT MASTERWORKS: November 3-November 24, 1990. Vancouver, B.
C.: Inuit Gallery of Vancouver, 1990.
Inuit Gallery of Vancouver
KEEWATIN SCULPTURE; REFLECTIONS OF THE SPIRIT. Vancouver, B.C.
: The Inuit Gallery of Vancouver, 1986.
Inuit Gallery of Vancouver
SCULPTURE OF THE INUIT: Masterwork Exhibitors of the Canadian
Arctic. Vancouver: Inuit Gallery, 1979.
Kalluak, Mark
PELTS TO STONE: A History of Arts & Crafts Production in
Arviat. Ottawa: Inuit Art Section, Indian and Northern Affairs
Canada, 1993.
MacMillan, Duane J.
PURE VISION: THE KEEWATIN SPIRIT. Inuit Art Quarterly, vol.1,
no.2, 1986. pp. 12.
MacMillan, Duane J.
PURE VISION: THE KEEWATIN SPIRIT. Inuit Art Quarterly, vol.1,
no.2, 1986. pp. 7.
Macduff, Alistair
LORDS OF THE STONE: An Anthology of Eskimo Sculpture. / By
Alistair Macduff. Photographs by George M. Galpin. North
Vancouver: Whitecap Books, 1982.
Marion Scott Gallery
ARVIAT: Eskimo Point. Vancouver: Marion Scott Ltd, 1989.
Marion Scott Gallery
INSPIRATION: FOUR DECADES OF SCULPTURE BY CANADIAN INUIT:
Curated by Norman Zepp. Vancouver: Marion Scott Gallery [1996].
Marion Scott Gallery
THE TREASURED MONUMENT: An Exhibition of Small-scale Inuit
Sculpture. Vancouver: Marion Scott Gallery, 1993.
Marion Scott Gallery
WOMEN OF THE NORTH: AN EXHIBITION OF ART BY INUIT WOMEN OF THE
CANADIAN ARCTIC: June 6-July 11, 1992. Vancouver: Marion
Scott Gallery, 1992.
Mays, John Bentley
NATIVE ARTISTS SEIZE THE MOMENT TO DISPLAY ANGER AGAINST
HISTORY. Globe and Mail, May 16, 1992. p. C14.
McMaster, Gerald & Lee-Ann Martin, eds.
INDIGENA: CONTEMPORARY NATIVE PERSPECTIVES. Vancouver/Toronto:
Douglas & MacIntyre; Hull: Canadian Museum of Civilization, 1992.
Mitchell, Marybelle
INDIGENA: Perspectives of indigenous peoples on five hundred
years. Inuit Art Quarterly, vol. 7, no. 3, Summer/Fall 1992,
pp. 41-43.
Musee des Beaux-Arts (Arras, France)
INUK, INUIT: Art et tradition chez les Esquimaux d'hier et
d'aujourd'hui. Arras, France: Musee des Beaux-Arts, 1987.
Swinton, George
ESKIMO ART RECONSIDERED. Artscanada, vol. 27, no. 6,
December-January, 1971-72. pp.85-94.
Swinton, George
SCULPTURE OF THE ESKIMO. Toronto: McClelland and Stewart, 1972.
The Earth Spirit Festival
VISIONS OF POWER: CONTEMPORARY ART BY FIRST NATIONS, INUIT AND
JAPANESE CANADIANS: Essays by Ingo Hessel, Bryce Kanbara [and]
Alfred Young Man. Toronto: The Earth Spirit Festival, 1991.
Vision Planetaire
NOUVEAUX TERRITOIRES: 350/500 ANS APRES: Une exposition d'art
aborigene contemporain du Canada. Montreal: Vision Planetaire:
Ville de Montreal: UNESCO, 1992.
Winnipeg Art Gallery
ESKIMO POINT/ARVIAT. Winnipeg: The Winnipeg Art Gallery, 1982.
Winnipeg Art Gallery
SWINTON COLLECTION OF INUIT ART. Winnipeg Art Gallery, 1987.
Winnipeg Art Gallery
THE MULDERS' COLLECTION OF ESKIMO SCULPTURE. Winnipeg: The
Winnipeg Art Gallery, 1976.
Zepp, Norman
PURE VISION: THE KEEWATIN SPIRIT. Regina, Saskatchewan: Norman
MacKenzie Art Gallery, 1986.
Nunatsiaq Online
CANADA LOSSES A GREAT ARTIST: Lucy Tasseor Tutsweetok
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