Artist Info
Niviaksiak
Niviaksiak was a sculptor and graphic artist from Kinngait (Cape Dorset), NU. Born in 1908, little is known about Niviaksiak’s early life. His siblings, Tikituk Quppapik (graphic artist and sculptor), Sheelaky (graphic artist), and Angotigolu Teevee (graphic artist) also became artists. As an adult, he spent much of his time living on the land with his wife, Kunu, and children. Niviaksiak was one of the first Inuit artists to make a print as part of the early experimental period of the Kinngait co-operative, and most of his prints from this time were done with sealskin stencils.
Niviaksiak’s work captured the interest of southern Canadians during the 1950s. Known for his use of abstraction, negative space, multiple perspectives, vibrant colours and simplified shapes, Niviaksiak contributed numerous images to the Cape Dorset annual print collection. In addition to the earlier sealskin stencil, some of Niviasiak’s prints were done in stonecut, a technique that was introduced towards the end of his life in the late 1950s. As a result of Niviasiak’s early death while hunting a polar bear, three prints were produced posthumously by his wife in the years before her own death. Their two sons, Kiatshuk (Qiatsuq) and Pitseolak Niviaqsi became printmakers and sculptors as well.
Niviasiak’s works have been exhibited internationally and in 1959, his print Polar Bear and Cub was acquired by the Museum of Modern Art in New York and reproduced as a Christmas card. His work has not yet been featured at the ULAG.
