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Artworks
JAYKO PITSEOLAK (1925-D) KINNGAIT (CAPE DORSET) / IQALUIT (FROBISHER BAY)
A Proud Mother with Four Children (Self Portrait?), c. late 1960s / early 1970sstone, 8.75 x 7 x 5 in (22.2 x 17.8 x 12.7 cm)
signed and inscribed with artist's disc number, "JAYKO / E71164".LOT 4
ESTIMATE: $1,000 — $1,500Further images
Originally from Cape Dorset, Jayko Pitseolak moved with her family to Iqaluit by dogteam in 1955. In a 2001 Nunatta Sunakkutaangit Museum project, she recalled having eight children, with only...Originally from Cape Dorset, Jayko Pitseolak moved with her family to Iqaluit by dogteam in 1955. In a 2001 Nunatta Sunakkutaangit Museum project, she recalled having eight children, with only four surviving, suggesting this may be a depiction of the artist with her own children. Whether or not this is a self-portrait is not necessary to know. It remains a warm and tender family group in any case. The central mother figure dominates the composition, her broad, rounded form serving as the physical and emotional centre of the work. She is not merely accompanied by her children but seems to contain them, her body expanding around them so fully that they appear almost to emerge from her body itself. That sense of enclosure is deepened by the warm brown, oxidized stone, whose mellow, earthy tone gives the surface a feeling of warmth and shelter.
ND
References: For additional information on the project at Nunatta Sunakkutaangit Museum and the artist’s role, see Patricia D’Souza, “A Long Time Ago When It Was Serene and Beautiful,” Nunatsiaq News, 21 Dec 2001. https://nunatsiaq.com/stories/article/a_long_time_ago_when_it_was_serene_and_beautiful/. Accessed 14 March 2026.Provenance
An American Private Collection.
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