Jacob Irkok began carving in the early 1960s and continued to do until the end of his life, sometimes in stone but most often and most famously in caribou antler. His graceful and quite naturalistic carvings of birds, caribou, and other animals were greatly admired by his Arviat artist peers as well as by collectors. As he typically did, Irkok carved Caribou from a flat piece of antler, lending it a two-dimensional, silhouette-like quality. It reminds us of the tanned caribou hide appliqué figures that Arviat textile artists sometimes used instead of felt. Caribou is an extraordinarily elegant and delicate work of art; one of the finest examples we have ever seen by this artist. [1]

1. For other fine examples see Ingo Hessel, Arctic Spirit (2006), cat. 99; Eskimo Point/Arviat (WAG, 1982), cat. 30; First Arts, 2 Dec. 2024, Lot 158; and Walker’s Auctions, 5 May 2013, Lot 30.