MATIUSI MANUKULLU QILUQI (1911-1968) PUVIRNITUQ (POVUNGNITUK), Head of a Man, c. mid 1960s

MATIUSI MANUKULLU QILUQI (1911-1968) PUVIRNITUQ (POVUNGNITUK)

Head of a Man, c. mid 1960s

stone, 4.75 x 2.5 x 2.5 in (12.1 x 6.3 x 6.3 cm)
inscribed with artist's disc number, "E91314";
with an affixed label from La Guilde [?], in an unknown hand, in ink, indistinct.

LOT 38
ESTIMATE: $250 — $350

In the late 1950s and early 1960s, many Inuit artists carved hunting and home-life scenes that likely drew on their own experience, but straightforward portraiture was still relatively rare. This...

In the late 1950s and early 1960s, many Inuit artists carved hunting and home-life scenes that likely drew on their own experience, but straightforward portraiture was still relatively rare. This work feels unusually personal all the same. One can’t help wondering who, exactly, the artist had in mind. The hairstyle is rendered with such specificity, and the fine crow’s-feet at the corners of the eyes suggest someone who smiles often, the kind of face shaped by laughter.

Provenance

Private Collection, Toronto.

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