Ada Eyetoaq (alternatively: Eyetoaq Eyetoaq, Kingilik Eyetoaq, Iyi'tuaq Eyetoaq, Eeyeetoaq Eyetoaq, Eyeetoaq Eyetoaq, Eeyeetowak Eyetoaq, Iyi'tag Eyetoaq, Eetoowa Eyetoaq, Eyittuak Eyetoaq, Eeyeeteetowak Eyetoaq, Iti'tuaq, Eeeyeetowa, Eda) (1934-2014) was a Baker Lake (Nunavut)

Inuk Inuit (singular: Inuk) are a group of culturally and historically similar Indigenous peoples of the Americas, Indigenous peoples traditionally inhabiting the Arctic and Subarctic regions of North America and Russia, including Greenland, Labr ...

artist who produced traditional Inuit art. She is primarily known for her miniature

soapstone Soapstone (also known as steatite or soaprock) is a talc-schist, which is a type of metamorphic rock. It is composed largely of the magnesium-rich mineral talc. It is produced by dynamothermal metamorphism and metasomatism, which occur in sub ...

sculptures.

Personal life

Eyetoaq married James Kingilik, also a soapstone sculptor, in the early 1950s. They had seven children, five biological and two adopted. In 1968 they moved from their traditional Inuit camp at Beverly Lake to the Baker Lake settlement. After moving, they lived in a tent for two months due to a lack of housing. It was around this time that the couple began their work as sculptors in order to supplement their incomes.

Art

Besides her sculptures, Eyetoaq also created drawings, prints, wool duffels, and felt wall hangings. But, her carvings are what have brought her notoriety, especially those involving the human form. She began carving in the 1970s and became one of Baker Lake's most respected female artists. Her work has been auctioned at a wide range of prices from the 100s to the 1000s.

Soapstone sculptures

Eyetoaq drew inspiration from her family's traditional Inuit background, especially the hunting and trapping aspects of her culture. Her carvings are primarily of human figures, but she also did work representing animals such as bears, fish, or birds. Often her work more specifically represents women, or mothers with children.

Collections

* Amon Carter Museum of American Art * Canada Council Art Bank: Ottawa * Canadian Museum of History * Clifford E. Lee Collection, University of Alberta: Edmonton * Inuit Cultural Institute: Rankin Inlet * Macdonald Stewart Art Centre * Musee des beaux-arts de Montreal * Museum of Anthropology, University of British Columbia: Vancouver * Prince of Wales Northern Heritage Centre: Yellowknife * Red Deer and District Museum and Archives: Red Deer * University of Alberta: Edmonton *

Winnipeg Art Gallery The Winnipeg Art Gallery (WAG) is an art museum in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. Its permanent collection includes over 24,000 works from Canadian, Indigenous Canadian, and international artists. The museum also holds the world's largest collect ...

Publications

''Ada Eyetoaq: Recent Sculpture/Sculpture Récente'', 1979 Canadian Arctic Producers Cooperative Ltd.

References

{{reflist 1934 births 2014 deaths 20th-century Canadian sculptors 20th-century Canadian women artists 20th-century Inuit artists 20th-century Inuit women Canadian Inuit women artists Canadian Inuit artists Inuit sculptors Inuit drawing artists Inuit textile artists Inuit printmakers