Almost from the very beginning, Karoo Ashevak instilled his figures with spirituality, or at least with “spirit.” He rarely titled his sculptures, so it is difficult to tell if a particular figure is meant to represent an actual spirit, a shaman performing a spiritual ritual or being infused by a spirit, or simply a “regular” human. With Karoo’s art, however, there really is no such thing as “simply.” Almost every portrayal is ambiguous in both form and meaning. As early as 1971 but certainly by 1972 Karoo was freely mixing mostly organic carving materials to create truly fantastical imagery that revolutionized the way we look at Inuit sculpture.

Spirit, probably dating from late 1971 or early 1972, is a delightful example of Karoo’s early classic style. The figure is dominated by its large head carved from relatively porous whale bone, pinned atop the denser bone body which itself is balanced on the sculpture’s base. The face, with its mismatched eyes, flaring nostrils, and gaping toothy mouth, might be frightening if it weren’t so endearing. Even more wildly mismatched than the eyes are the spirit’s legs; it is Karoo’s genius that allows us to see these as hilarious rather than disturbing. Spirit has a doll-like charm yet possesses an undeniably powerful sculptural presence.

Jean Blodgett’s landmark 1977 exhibition catalogue Karoo Ashevak illustrates several works that resemble Spirit, either stylistically or in terms of their various “parts”; see cats. 4, 9, 22, 34, and 39. See also First Arts, 5 Dec. 2022, Lot 81.

References: For an important work by the artist see First Arts, 5 Dec. 2022, Lot 81. For a contemporaneous and similarly styled figure by Karoo see Jean Blodgett, Karoo Ashevak, (Winnipeg: Winnipeg Art Gallery, 1977), cat. 22; this catalogue is still the most important work on the artist and his work. But see also American Indian Arts Center, Karoo Ashevak: Spirits, (New York: American Indian Arts Center, 1973), with an introduction by Judy McGrath. For works with similarly inlaid teeth, from 1972 and 1973, see Blodgett, Karoo Ashevak, 1977, cats. 27, 34, and 36; and First Arts, 5 Dec. 2022. Lot 81. For another, c. 1971-72, see Walker’s Auctions, Ottawa, May 25, 2016, Lot 19. For a later figure (1974) similarly formed but posed in reverse, see ibid., cat. 39. For a quite similar work by the artist see Waddington’s Auctions, Toronto, Nov. 2002, Lot 324.