Moses P.O.V. was one of several Inuit who moved from Puvirnituq (Povungnituk) to Inukjuak in the 1950s. They were named “P-O-V” to distinguish them from local people with the same Christian names, and these surnames stuck. Although apparently only an occasional carver, Moses created two very similar and very fine depictions of standing women, both of which have been published. A Standing Woman from c. 1955 was, for many years, in the Robertson Collection in Ottawa. [1] Remarkably, ours was published in a little-known German book on Inuit sculpture published in 1958! We suggest that our Standing Woman was carved perhaps a year later than the Robertson piece, as it is rather more accomplished, with lovely proportions and greater finesse in the details. Beautifully carved and finished in the luscious marbled green stone that is highly prized among collectors of early Inukjuak sculpture, Standing Woman has a quite commanding presence. After such a promising start, it is a pity that Moses P.O.V. did not pursue his art career more seriously.

1. Jean Blodgett, Selections from The John and Mary Robertson Collection of Inuit Sculpture, (Kingston: Agnes Etherington Art Centre, 1986), cat. 35, p. 56.