Artist Info
Eliyakota Samualie
Eliyakota Samualie was a graphic artist and sculptor from Kinngait (Cape Dorset), NU. Samualie was born in 1939 at Sugbuk camp, to graphic artist Keeleemeeoomee Samualie. Her father died at a young age and Samualie was raised for a number of years by her maternal grandparents, Kingwatsiak and Qaluittuq. Her first experiences with drawing were during this time she lived with her grandparents. She returned to drawing when she was in her early twenties; at that time, she was still living with her grandfather in his Styrofoam igloo, a building type introduced by the federal government in the late 1950s, and recorded the experiences of her daily life and composed them into drawings.
Shortly after, she moved to Kinngait to live with her mother and step-father, sculptor and graphic artist Samuellie Tunnillie. These drawings were made into prints for the 1970 annual Cape Dorset collection, and showed an early example of the precision, stylization, and symmetry of human, animal, and spirit forms that Samualie became known for. Samualie’s mother, Keeleemeeoomee has said that despite coming from an artistic family, with artistic siblings Anna Kingwatsiak, Tye Adla, Iyola Kingwatsiak, and Mikigak Kingwatsiak, it was Eliyakota who inspired her own artistic pursuits.
Samualie’s decorative style has been likened to the renowned Kinngait artist, Kenojuak Ashevak and has been featured in a number of exhibitions. Most recently her work has been included in the 2017 ULAG show, ᐃᓄᐃᑦ.
