Wall Hanging Inuksuit Marking Good Hunting and Fishing

Description

The 12 Inuksuit and 9 faces in this masterpiece are all heavily embroidered, as is the background. The six stoic faces on the sides with hair straight across their brows are male; the three smiling faces in the middle with parted hair are female. While out on the land, the woman usually fish while the men hunt. Both use Inuksuit to mark good areas for hunting and fishing; sometimes Inuksuit are used to direct caribou to a narrow spot where the hunters await.The Inuksuit that Tatya has created here are fascinating: all have facial features; some have fox or wolf heads, and some have pentagon-shaped heads which mirror the geometric triangles, rectangles and semi-circle shapes of the stone bodies. Although they are placed in the background, their presence is clearly powerful and mystical.Tatya is one of the original generation of wallhanging artists, and was one of the first to begin making them in 1965. More than 40 years later, she has not lost any of her skill and imagination. Tatya is one of the artists in the landmark Northern lights textile art exhibitions. In 1989, a wallhanging of hers was reproduced on a UNICEF Christmas card. Her step-daughter, Gloria Inugaq Putumiraqtuq, is also a wallhanging artist.