Eegyvudluk Pootoogook (1931-2000) was an Inuk printmaker and sculptor. He was married to the artist

Napachie Pootoogook Napachie Pootoogook (June 26, 1938 – December 18, 2002) was a Canadian Inuit graphic artist. Life and family Napachie Pootoogook is the only daughter of acclaimed artist Pitseolak Ashoona. She was born in the Sarruq Island camp near south Ba ...

Early life and education

He was born in 1931, to graphic artist and carver Joseph (Eegyvudluk) Pootagook (1887–1958) and graphic artist Ningeookaluk (1889–1962). His father wan an important hunter and camp leader. His brothers Kananginak, Paulassie, Solomonie, and Pudlat all became artists as well.

Career

Pootoogook was part of the

West Baffin Eskimo Co-operative The West Baffin Eskimo Cooperative, also known as the Kinngait Co-operative is an Inuit co-operative in Kinngait, Nunavut best known for its activities in buying, producing and selling Inuit artworks. The co-operative is part of Arctic Co-operati ...

, where he worked alongside

Iyola Kingwatsiak Iyola Kingwatsiak (August 3, 1933 – 2000) was an Inuit visual artist from Kinngait. Early life He was born on August 3, 1933, in Kinngait (Cape Dorset) in the Qikiqtaaluk Region (Baffin Island). Many of his family members were also artists, in ...

and Lukta Qiaqsuq. He was one of Kinngait's eminent printmakers of the 1980s, and sculpted as well. He was known to have tried a variety of printmaking techniques, including

linocut Linocut, also known as lino print, lino printing or linoleum art, is a printmaking technique, a variant of woodcut in which a sheet of linoleum (sometimes mounted on a wooden block) is used for a relief surface. A design is cut into the linoleum s ...

lithography Lithography () is a planographic method of printing originally based on the immiscibility of oil and water. The printing is from a stone (lithographic limestone) or a metal plate with a smooth surface. It was invented in 1796 by the German a ...

, etching, stonecut, stonecut and stencil,

sealskin Sealskin is the skin of a seal. Seal skins have been used by aboriginal people for millennia to make waterproof jackets and boots, and seal fur to make fur coats. Sailors used to have tobacco pouches made from sealskin. Canada, Greenland, Norwa ...

stencil, stencil, and silkscreen and stencil. His works frequently depicted animals native to Nunavut, including Arctic hares, bears, geese, and muskox. He also created images of sea spirits. Pootoogook's work is held in the permanent collections of several museums, including the

Tate Tate is an institution that houses, in a network of four art galleries, the United Kingdom's national collection of British art, and international modern and contemporary art. It is not a government institution, but its main sponsor is the U ...

, the Agnes Etherington Art Centre, the

Museum of Anthropology at UBC The Museum of Anthropology at the University of British Columbia (UBC) campus in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada is renowned for its displays of world arts and cultures, in particular works by First Nations of the Pacific Northwest. As well as ...

, the

Canadian Museum of History The Canadian Museum of History (french: Musée canadien de l’histoire) is a national museum on anthropology, Canadian history, cultural studies, and ethnology in Gatineau, Quebec, Canada. The purpose of the museum is to promote the heritage of C ...

, the University of Lethbridge Art Collection the National Gallery of Canada, and the University of Michigan Museum of Art.

Personal life

In the mid-1950s, he married artist Napachie Pootoogook, daughter of

Pitseolak Ashoona Pitseolak Ashoona ( – May 28, 1983;) was an Inuk Canadian artist admired for her prolific body of work. She was also a member of the Royal Canadian Academy of Arts. Biography Pitseolak was born to Timungiak and Oootochie on Nottingham Island ...

, in an

arranged marriage Arranged marriage is a type of marital union where the bride and groom are primarily selected by individuals other than the couple themselves, particularly by family members such as the parents. In some cultures a professional matchmaker may be us ...

. They married in Kaiktuuq,

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'' ...

, then moved to Cape Dorset where they lived for most of their marriage, except for two years spent living in Iqaluit. They had eleven children (many of whom died young) including the artist

Annie Pootoogook Annie Pootoogook (May 11, 1969 – September 19, 2016) was a Canadian Inuk artist known for her pen and coloured pencil drawings. In her art, Pootoogook often portrayed the experiences of those in her community of Kinngait (then known in English a ...

(1969–2016).

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Pootoogook, Eegyvudluk 1931 births 2000 deaths Inuit printmakers Inuit sculptors 20th-century Canadian sculptors 20th-century Canadian printmakers Inuit from Nunavut Artists from Nunavut Canadian male artists Canadian male sculptors 20th-century Canadian male artists