Alootook Ipellie (Nuvuqquq,
Northwest Territories
The Northwest Territories (abbreviated ''NT'' or ''NWT''; french: Territoires du Nord-Ouest, formerly ''North-Western Territory'' and ''North-West Territories'' and namely shortened as ''Northwest Territory'') is a federal territory of Canada. ...
, 1951 – Ottawa, September 8, 2007)
was an
Inuk
Inuit (; iu, ᐃᓄᐃᑦ 'the people', singular: Inuk, , dual: Inuuk, ) are a group of culturally similar indigenous peoples inhabiting the Arctic and subarctic regions of Greenland, Labrador, Quebec, Nunavut, the Northwest Territories, and ...
graphic artist, political and satirical cartoonist, writer, photographer, and
Inuktitut
Inuktitut (; , syllabics ; from , "person" + , "like", "in the manner of"), also Eastern Canadian Inuktitut, is one of the principal Inuit languages of Canada. It is spoken in all areas north of the tree line, including parts of the provinces o ...
translator.
Early life and education
Ipellie was born in the small hunting camp of Nuvuqquq
near
Frobisher Bay
Frobisher Bay is an inlet of the Davis Strait in the Qikiqtaaluk Region of Nunavut, Canada. It is located in the southeastern corner of Baffin Island. Its length is about and its width varies from about at its outlet into the Labrador Sea ...
,
Northwest Territories
The Northwest Territories (abbreviated ''NT'' or ''NWT''; french: Territoires du Nord-Ouest, formerly ''North-Western Territory'' and ''North-West Territories'' and namely shortened as ''Northwest Territory'') is a federal territory of Canada. ...
, now known as
Iqaluit
Iqaluit ( ; , ; ) is the capital of the Canadian territory of Nunavut, its largest community, and its only city. It was known as Frobisher Bay from 1942 to 1987, after the large bay on the coast on which the city is situated. In 1987, its t ...
,
Nunavut
Nunavut ( , ; iu, ᓄᓇᕗᑦ , ; ) is the largest and northernmost Provinces and territories of Canada#Territories, territory of Canada. It was separated officially from the Northwest Territories on April 1, 1999, via the ''Nunavut Act'' ...
on
Baffin Island
Baffin Island (formerly Baffin Land), in the Canadian territory of Nunavut, is the largest island in Canada and the fifth-largest island in the world. Its area is , slightly larger than Spain; its population was 13,039 as of the 2021 Canadia ...
. His father, Joanassie, died in a hunting accident before Ipellie's first birthday,
and his mother, Napatchie, moved with him to the hamlet of Frobisher Bay.
[
] "He spent his childhood and early teenage years adjusting to the transition from the traditional nomadic Inuit way of life to life in government-sponsored Inuit settlements." His grandfather was the sculptor
Ennutsiak.
There was no high school in his community so Ipellie had to move to complete his education. He ended up at Ottawa's
High School of Commerce where he discovered his artistic ability. Ipellie eventually settled in Ottawa.
Career
Ipellie worked as a journalist, cartoonist and editor for ''Inuit Monthly'' ( aka ''Inuit Today'') during the 1970s and 80s.
In 1974, he started producing the comic strip "Ice Box"
that became a regular feature in ''Inuit Monthly''. "The cartoons featured the Nook family and provided northern readers with a humorous look at issues affecting the Arctic. The Nooks, like Ipellie himself, were living through a transitional period in the North during which traditional Inuit language, social structure, and means of survival were being superseded by the new social, religious, and political structures of the South."
He also participated in films like
The Owl and the Ravenan
Legends and Life of the Inuit''
He then went on to create the comic strip Nuna and Vut in the 1990s. These cartoons explored Inuit life during the creation of
Nunavut
Nunavut ( , ; iu, ᓄᓇᕗᑦ , ; ) is the largest and northernmost Provinces and territories of Canada#Territories, territory of Canada. It was separated officially from the Northwest Territories on April 1, 1999, via the ''Nunavut Act'' ...
. Using humor and illustrations, he commented on the social issues and inequity in Inuit communities.
Some of his poetry "The Igloos Are Calm in the Camp," "the Dancing Sun," "The Water Moved an Instant Before" were published in special issues of
Canadian Literature
Canadian literature is the literature of a multicultural country, written in languages including Canadian English, Canadian French, Indigenous languages, and many others such as Canadian Gaelic. Influences on Canadian writers are broad both ge ...
. Professo
Michael P. J. Kennedybelieves "Ipellie to be one of Canada's finest, and under-rated, aboriginal writers."
He collaborated with authors providing the illustrations to books like ''Paper stays put : a collection of Inuit writing'' edited by Robin Gedalof.
Ipellie made a significant contribution to
Canadian Literature
Canadian literature is the literature of a multicultural country, written in languages including Canadian English, Canadian French, Indigenous languages, and many others such as Canadian Gaelic. Influences on Canadian writers are broad both ge ...
with the publication of his short story collection " ''Arctic Dreams and Nightmares''," presenting the changes and challenges faced by the Inuit. This was the first published work by an Inuk author.
Poetry and prose
In 1971, the Department of Indian Affairs and Northern Development (DIAND), published three of then 17-year-old Ipellie's illustrated poems in their magazine, ''North''.
[This May–June 1971 article was published in ''North'' , a scarce publication by the Department of Indian Affairs and Northern Development in Ottawa.)]
In his poem entitled "Hot to Warm and Cool to Cold", he wrote,
Other poems that have been published in poetry anthologies and journals, include " Nipikti the Old Man Carver," "Frobisher Bay Childhood," "Damn Those Invaders" and "Siqiniq 'The Sun'".
In 1980, Ipellie collaborated with Robin Gedalof in the
University of Washington Press
The University of Washington Press is an American academic publishing house. The organization is a division of the University of Washington, based in Seattle. Although the division functions autonomously, they have worked to assist the universit ...
publication of ''Paper Stays Put: A Collection of Inuit Writing''—a collection of "stories, poems, essays, plays, memoirs and songs" written by Inuit from Canada and illustrated by Ipellie, that was used as a GED teacher's.
[
*
*]
In 1993, the first book that exclusively featured Ipellie's stories and his pen and ink drawings, was published—''Arctic Dreams and Nightmares''.
In 2005, Ipellie wrote the foreword for the illustrated book entitled ''The Diary of Abraham Ulrikab: Text and Context'', the story of
Ulrikab (1845 - 1881) who became an attraction in one of
Carl Hagenbeck
Carl Hagenbeck (10 June 1844 – 14 April 1913) was a Germans, German merchant of wild animals who supplied many European zoos, as well as P. T. Barnum. He created the modern zoo with animal enclosures without bars that were closer to their natu ...
's ethnographical shows in
Hamburg
(male), (female) en, Hamburger(s),
Hamburgian(s)
, timezone1 = Central (CET)
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,
Germany
Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...
.
[
*
*] The book was published in German in 2007.
His 2007 illustrated book entitled ''The Inuit Thought of It: Amazing Arctic Innovations'' and translated into French as ''Innovations inuites: il fallait y penser''—co-authored by David MacDonald, received a number of awards including the Canadian Children’s Book Centre's Best Books for Kids & Teens in 2008.
He co-authored content for Inuit.net with
Carol Rigby on Nunavut.
His 2009 illustrated book entitled ''I Shall Wait and Wait'' , which was published after he had died, described the traditional Inuit seal hunt.
[
*
*]
Artwork in public collections
Ipellie's artwork has been included in a number of public collections and galleries including in the
Carleton University Art Gallery, the
Canada Council Art Bank in Ottawa, and the
Richard F. Brush Art Gallery at
St. Lawrence University in New York.
Awards and honors
In 2019, Ipellie was inducted into the
Canadian Cartoonists Hall of Fame.
Death
Ipellie died of a heart attack in
Ottawa
Ottawa (, ; Canadian French: ) is the capital city of Canada. It is located at the confluence of the Ottawa River and the Rideau River in the southern portion of the province of Ontario. Ottawa borders Gatineau, Quebec, and forms the core ...
, Ontario at age 56
and is survived by his daughter, Taina Ipellie.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ipellie, Alootook
1951 births
2007 deaths
Inuit from the Northwest Territories
Inuit illustrators
Writers from Nunavut
Artists from Nunavut
Canadian cartoonists
Canadian non-fiction writers
People from Iqaluit
Inuit writers
Inuit from Nunavut
20th-century non-fiction writers