Maggie Napartuk
B. 1981 Inukjuak, QC —
A giant snowflake comprised of swimming seals and uluit (women’s knives) caught on the tale of a diving whale; an inky floor circling a female figure in traditional dress softening kamiik (boots); an igloo crowned in harpoons as an enlarged seal skin encroaches: these are among the many scenes appearing in the linocuts of Inukjuak-based Maggie Napartuk, who has participated in workshops throughout Nunavik and Quebec to both learn and share her skills in linocut printmaking. Her bold monochromatic prints reflect the endurance of Inuit traditions while celebrating the relationships between landscapes and their inhabitants. Frequently challenging the expected visual hierarchy of elements in her works, Napartuk’s use of scale emphasizes the many interrelations of the natural world—from the vastness of oceans to the intimacy of a quotidian moment.