EEGYVUDLUK RAGEE (1920-1983) KINNGAIT (CAPE DORSET)
stonecut and stencil, 23.5 x 31.5 in (59.7 x 80 cm)
16/50
ESTIMATE: $300 — $400
This work is carefully arranged and uses nested framing, a visual choice that is somewhat uncommon in Kinngait works. A bold, continuous black outline forms an undulating border that acts like a cartouche, enclosing the scene and creating a steady rhythm through repeated notches along the inside edge. Within this shape, two large birds face one another in near-mirror form. Their overlapping scale patterns and the black-and-white feather designs add an even, measured texture, and that same patterning appears again in the two birds set to either side. Colour is used with restraint but real intent. Strong yellow fills the wings and upper bodies of the central pair, making them the main focus, while grey and black define smaller forms and contours. Above them, slightly behind, a small red-orange head sits at the top and locks the composition into place. Taken all together, the birds are pressed tightly together within the enclosing frame, their bodies clustered and overlapping so the scene reads as a single, intimate group held in close quarters.
