This large and quite imposing Standing Woman is almost monumental in scale and presence, yet it evokes a sense of intimacy that we generally see only in much smaller works. The woman – probably an elderly woman – stands huddled in her amautiq; her face is framed by the voluminous hood and by her arms which seem almost an extension of it. We know that we are looking at an adult figure, yet the impression is almost of a swaddled infant. This feeling is only strengthened when we see the sculpture from the back; there is almost no hint of clothing; the backside looks like a protective shell or carapace. If the sculpture were much smaller, we would wish to cradle it in our hands. If it were much lighter, we would want to hold it close to our chest. Astonishing.

In its large scale and monumentality, Standing Woman is reminiscent of Kavik’s iconic Man Wearing Snow Goggles in the National Gallery Collection (see Zepp, Pure Vision, cat. 53), but while that work is decidedly hard and masculine, Standing Woman is quite the opposite. The sculpture is spare but not raw or crude but almost soft and certainly moving. John Kavik has graced us with yet another enigmatic and evocative masterpiece, a soulful work of great emotional and psychological force.

References: For a similar example see George Swinton, Sculpture of the Inuit, (Toronto: McClelland & Stewart, 1972), fig.103, p. 75. For other examples of the artist’s work see First Arts, July 2020, Lots 81-83; Nov. 2021, Lots 40, 81, 93. See also George Swinton, Sculpture of the Inuit, (Toronto: McClelland & Stewart, 1972/92), figs. 639-647, p. 214-215; Norman Zepp, Pure Vision: The Keewatin Spirit, (Regina: Norman Mackenzie Art Gallery, 1986), pp. 108-119; Canadian Eskimo Arts Council, Sculpture / Inuit: Masterworks of the Canadian Arctic, (Toronto: University of Toronto Press, 1971), figs. 102, 223, 284, 291, 322, 346, 359, 386, 397; Ingo Hessel, Inuit Art: An Introduction, (Vancouver: Douglas & McIntyre / New York: Harry Abrams / London: British Museum Press, 1998), figs. 77-78. See also Walker’s Auctions, May 2014, Lot 220; Nov. 2016, Lot 17; May 2017, Lot 34.