Aka Høegh (b. 16 December 1947) is a

Greenland Greenland ( kl, Kalaallit Nunaat, ; da, Grønland, ) is an island country in North America that is part of the Kingdom of Denmark. It is located between the Arctic and Atlantic oceans, east of the Canadian Arctic Archipelago. Greenland is t ...

ic artist. Born in

Qullissat Qullissat (old spelling: ''Qutdligssat'')''Nuussuaq'', Saga Map, Tage Schjøtt, 1992 is a former settlement in the Qeqertalik municipality, located on the north-east coast of Disko Island on the west coast of Greenland. It was a coal mining town ...

Disko Island Disko Island ( kl, Qeqertarsuaq, da, Diskoøen) is a large island in Baffin Bay, off the west coast of Greenland. It has an area of ,Qaqortoq Qaqortoq, formerly Julianehåb, is a city in the Kujalleq municipalities of Greenland, municipality in southern Greenland, located near Cape Thorvaldsen. With a population of 3,050 in 2020, it is the most populous town and the municipal capital in ...

in her childhood, and has lived in southern Greenland ever since. As a painter, graphic artist, and sculptor, Høegh focuses on nationalistic expressionism, creating art which reflects local, traditional myths, and is steeped in heritage and local lore. She frequently incorporates legend, nature, and provincial mythos into her works, devising strong connections between her art and local tradition. During the 1970s, she was regularly cited as the main artist in establishing a Greenlandic artistic identity. In September 2013 she was honoured of

Nersornaat Greenland Medal for Meritorious Service ( kl, Nersornaat, lit=Deserved; da, Grønlands Hjemmestyres Fortjenstmedalje), is awarded by the Greenland Home Rule government. It is the highest award based in Greenland. The medal was instituted on 1 May ...

order.

Major works

She is most well known for heading the art project "''Stone and Man''" between the years 1993 and 1994 in her home town of Qaqortoq in southern Greenland. The work is a dynamic, ongoing piece, with more pieces being added to at semi-regular intervals. Initially 18 artists from Sweden,

Finland Finland ( fi, Suomi ; sv, Finland ), officially the Republic of Finland (; ), is a Nordic country in Northern Europe. It shares land borders with Sweden to the northwest, Norway to the north, and Russia to the east, with the Gulf of B ...

, Norway, and the

Faroe Islands The Faroe Islands ( ), or simply the Faroes ( fo, Føroyar ; da, Færøerne ), are a North Atlantic island group and an autonomous territory of the Kingdom of Denmark. They are located north-northwest of Scotland, and about halfway bet ...

participated in the project. As a member of the international artist group "Art for Life" Høegh is cooperating with eleven other artists to produce the world's largest painting in Spain. The painting's projected size is 24.644 square meters. Apart from being guest student at the

Academy of Arts An academy (Attic Greek: Ἀκαδήμεια; Koine Greek Ἀκαδημία) is an institution of secondary or tertiary higher learning (and generally also research or honorary membership). The name traces back to Plato's school of philosophy, f ...

Copenhagen Copenhagen ( or .; da, København ) is the capital and most populous city of Denmark, with a proper population of around 815.000 in the last quarter of 2022; and some 1.370,000 in the urban area; and the wider Copenhagen metropolitan ar ...

, Høegh is an

autodidact Autodidacticism (also autodidactism) or self-education (also self-learning and self-teaching) is education without the guidance of masters (such as teachers and professors) or institutions (such as schools). Generally, autodidacts are individua ...

Exhibitions and international co-operation

Høegh has had solo exhibitions in Greenland, Denmark,

Iceland Iceland ( is, Ísland; ) is a Nordic island country in the North Atlantic Ocean and in the Arctic Ocean. Iceland is the most sparsely populated country in Europe. Iceland's capital and largest city is Reykjavík, which (along with its s ...

Alaska Alaska ( ; russian: Аляска, Alyaska; ale, Alax̂sxax̂; ; ems, Alas'kaaq; Yup'ik: ''Alaskaq''; tli, Anáaski) is a state located in the Western United States on the northwest extremity of North America. A semi-exclave of the U.S., ...

, Germany,

, Sweden,

Latvia Latvia ( or ; lv, Latvija ; ltg, Latveja; liv, Leţmō), officially the Republic of Latvia ( lv, Latvijas Republika, links=no, ltg, Latvejas Republika, links=no, liv, Leţmō Vabāmō, links=no), is a country in the Baltic region of ...

, and Norway, as well as group exhibitions over most of Europe. She represented Greenland in "Scandinavia Today" in the United States, Mexico, and

Lithuania Lithuania (; lt, Lietuva ), officially the Republic of Lithuania ( lt, Lietuvos Respublika, links=no ), is a country in the Baltic region of Europe. It is one of three Baltic states and lies on the eastern shore of the Baltic Sea. Lithuania ...

. Høegh's art can be found on many public buildings in Greenland. The relief outside the Workers' Folk High School in her home town Qaqortoq is her work. The chimney of the new power plant is adorned by her artwork, as well.

Personal life

Høegh has been married to photographer and film artist Ivars Silis since 1976 . The couple have two children, Inuk Silis Høegh (b. 1972) and Bolatta Silis Høegh (b. 1981), both of whom are artists today."Bolatta Silis-Høegh: Evoking Greenland’s Past and Future."
''Greenland.'' Accessed December 12, 2012.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hoegh, Aka 1947 births Living people Greenlandic artists Greenlandic Inuit people People from Qaqortoq Disko Island Greenlandic women artists 20th-century women artists