Thomas Suvaaraq’s sculpture was once more readily recognized than it is today. Over time, his work has slipped from view, partly because of the superficial resemblance of his shaman figures to those of Luke Iksiktaaryuk, and partly because his name has so often been confused with that of the better known sculptor Thomas Sivuraq.

The comparison with Iksiktaaryuk is understandable, but Suvaaraq’s figures have their own readily identifiable character. He concentrated almost exclusively on single shamans and frequently dressed them with fur, using it for hair, collars, sleeve ruffs and amulet belts. These additions give the figures a dense, tactile presence and a slightly wild, animated surface. This example is closely related to his Shaman of 1974, formerly in the Zazelenchuk Collection and exhibited in Jean Blodgett’s The Coming and Going of the Shaman at the Winnipeg Art Gallery in 1978, as well as in the WAG’s exhibition of the Zazelenchuk Collection the same year.

Suvaaraq’s abilities extended well beyond these distinctive figures. He also carved in stone, including a fine muskox illustrated in the Sanavik Co-op catalogue Baker Lake: Sculpture 1974, and was an accomplished printmaker. Most notably, he cut the stone block for Ruth Qaulluaryuk’s celebrated 1975 print Hundreds and Hundreds, Herds of Caribou, a work of exceptional density and technical ambition.

FA