Dancers and Drummer - Large Two Sided Whalebone Sculpture
by Harry Al Ningealook, Inupiaq
whale jaw bone, fossilized whalebone, baleen and walrus ivory inlays, wolf ruff
45" high x 11" wide x 10" deep
Spectacular whalebone carving depicting a drummer at the base, with a dancer above him, another dancer is on the back side. The dancers wear mitts with wolf faces, and the dancers have wonderful, bushy eyebrows. All of their parkas are embellished with circular inlays of walrus ivory and baleen. It is rare to find whalebone sculpture of this size, and the artist was inspired by the natural shape and flow of this jawbone to create this work.
Inupiaq carver Harry Ningealook was born in Shismaref, Alaska in 1957. Harry’s world has primarily been the isolated community of Shismaref, leaving only to attend school in Nome. Growing up in a family of noted carvers, Harry learned to carve as a teenager under the guidance of his elders. He specializes in creating beautiful sculptures in fossilized whalebone and walrus ivory. Harry enjoys his work and the quiet time it gives him to think and remember the people who have help shape his life and inspire his art.
