Artist Info
Lucy Qinnuayuak
Lucy Qinnuayuak was a graphic artist from Kinngait (Cape Dorset), NU. Born in Salluit, Quebec (Nunavik) in 1915 to Sana and Takolik, she moved a few years later to Baffin Island after her father's death. Her mother later married Takata Meesa, a sculptor and graphic artist, and the family moved to the Kinngait area. At a young age, Qinnuayuak married Tikitu Qinnuayuak and the couple lived on the land until Tikitu developed tuberculosis and was evacuated to the south in the 1960s. During her husband’s illness, Qinnuayuak relied on the income from her art. Once recovered, the couple permanently relocated to Kinngait and had six children, with only one, her eldest daughter Arngashu, living until adulthood.
Qinnuayuak was one of the first to create graphics through the Kinngait Studios. In the 1950s, at the encouragement of James Houston, Qinnuayuak began drawing at the Kinngait Studios (formerly West-Baffin Eskimo Co-operative). These early works were stonecut, the primary printmaking technique at the time. Although she began working in graphite and pencil, Qinnuayuak worked later in her career with acrylics and mixed media projects. Qinnuayuak’s art has been described as realistic and humorous, as well as reflective of the traditional Inuit way of life.
Between 1961 and 1982, Qinnuayuak’s works were featured in each of the Cape Dorset print collections. In 1972, one of her prints was used as a UNICEF greeting card, and in 1976, another print was used on the 1976 Summer Olympics banner in Montreal. Her works are held in numerous major artistic institutions and have most recently been exhibited in the 2019 ULAG exhibitions The Canadian Feminine and From the Collection.
