Rendered in a saturated, classic 1950s Kinngait blue, Char Fishermen by the famed Niviaqsi unfolds with a left-to-right rhythm that feels both narrative and lyrical. The composition moves laterally, with three hunters spaced evenly across the page, each linked to the next by the visual tether of their kakivak and the fish they carry. The repetition of their forms, similar yet not identical, creates a sense of forward motion, as if capturing sequential moments in a larger story unfolding just beyond the frame.

Niviaqsi’s artistic career was brief. His life ended unexpectedly during a 1959 hunting trip. Yet even in that short time, his work left a strong impression. In reviews of the inaugural Kinngait print exhibition, La Revue Populaire called the artist, “the philosopher and perhaps the greatest of all these groups of artists" [1].