Foraging Goose
by Paulosie Sivuak (1930-1986), Inuit
Povungnituk, Nunavut, Canada
soapstone
3” high x 7” long x 2” wide
Paulosie Sivuak (1930-1986) was from the Inuit community of Povungnituk in the Nunavut territory of the Canadian arctic.
Sivuak learned to carve by watching his older brother, Koperqualuk. He was also inspired by James Houston and the success of his predecessors in Inukjuak, who traded their stone and ivory carvings to people aboard the supply ship Nascopie. He carved his first piece in 1948 or 1949 and shortly thereafter produced an additional sculpture of two otters pegged to a base, which he carved with a pocket knife and sold to the Hudson’s Bay Company.
Sivuak greatly admired the carvings of his older brother and also remembers being impressed by the works of Noah Kenoua, a physically disabled carver who lived in a different camp, but also sold his work to the Hudson’s Bay Company (Mitchell 1995:55). He also recalls seeing James Houston’s instructional pamphlet Eskimo Handicrafts (published in 1951 by the Canadian Handicrafts Guild and widely circulated throughout the North), but says: “I remember that I didn’t follow the advice in there [the booklet] because I didn’t like the drawings at all”
At the beginning of his career, Sivuak focussed exclusively on carving, but later branched out to printmaking when the local co-op was established in the early 1960s. He is known for his realistic portrayals of birds, otters, bears, and other arctic animals.
Sivuak was involved in establishing the cooperative in Povungnituk, and became its first manager in 1962. In 1967, he served as a director of La Fédération des Coopérative du Nouveau-Québec and, later, as president of Inuit Tungavingai Nunamimi, the movement opposed to the James Bay Agreement. His work has been featured in numerous exhibitions throughout Canada and the United States and is included in important public collections including those of the Canadian Museum of Civilization (Ottawa), the Dennos Museum Centre (Michigan), the Glenbow Museum (Calgary), the Musée du Quebec, the Art Gallery of Greater Victoria, the Winnipeg Art Gallery, and the Royal Ontario Museum (Toronto).
A special memorial section of the annual Povungnituk Print Collection was devoted to Sivuak’s work in 1987.
