11” Pale Green Loon with Inlay Eyes by Jimmy Iqaluq

Inuit art: Loon with Inlay Eyes
Inuit Artist: Jimmy Iqaluq
Size: 11” long, 4.5” high, 3.5" wide
Community: Sanikiluaq, NU
Stone: Argillite 
id: d-djj787988

The Belcher Islands, home to the community of Sanikiluaq, have very large resident and migratory bird populations, so it is no surprise that birds are among the most popular subjects for local carvers.

It is difficult not to be aroused by the sheer beauty of this sculpture. Not only is this loon carved with extraordinary skill and sensitivity, but Jimmy Iqaluq - the master carver who created this work - has manifested this masterpiece into a high degree of naturalism. He gave this stone a breath of life. This piece is truly a labour of love. 

The eyes are electrifying - made from a rare red stone that Jimmy Iqaluq acquired from the seashore near his campsite. The eyes are then inserted and carved out of a different rock.

Iqaluq is famous for his loons as one sits in the National Gallery of Canada, located in Ottawa. He is amidst the five elite Inuit artists in Canada and has exhibitions that have toured all over the world. His pieces are valued very highly.

Jimmy Iqaluq (1947 - present)
Community: Sanikiluaq

Solo exhibition:
"An exhibition of art by Jimmy Iqaluq of Sanikiluaq", Indian and Inuit Art Gallery in the offices of the federal department of Indian and Northern Affairs, Hull, Ontario, Canada, 2005
Exhibitions:
"Keeping Our Stories Alive: An Exhibition of the Art and Crafts from Dene and Inuit of Canada", Institute of American Indian Arts Museum, Santa Fe, New Mexico, USA, 1995
"Belcher Island Sculpture", Robertson Galleries, Ottawa, Canada, 1980
"Belcher Island Sculpture", Inuit Gallery of Vancouver, Vancouver, BC, Canada, 1981
"Sculpture from Belcher Islands", Images of the North, San Francisco, California, USA, 1981
"Belcher Island Community Sculpture", The Raven Gallery, Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA, 1981
"Baffin Images", Orca Aart, Chicago, Illinois, USA, 1989
"Kunstwerke der Inuit", Presented by CreARTion, Eppstein in conjunction with the annual meeting of the Association of Canadian Studies at the Hotel am Badersee, Grainau, Germany, 1993
"Share the Vision", Philadelphians Collect Inuit Art, Art Space Gallery, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA, 1994
"Miniaturen", Inuit Galerie, Mannheim, Germany, 1998