While we are fortunate to know the names of many of the early pioneers of Inuit sculpture, a large number remain unidentified. Fortunately, despite their lack of identifying marks, many works can almost certainly be assumed to be by the same hand. This remarkable tableau bears an uncanny stylistic resemblance to the wonderful Family with Fish from the Swinton Collection at the Winnipeg Art Gallery (G-60-140). While bone or ivory inlay was common in Inukjuak in the first half of the 1950s, these ivory faces are amongst the most expressive and lifelike examples we have seen. One wonders if the artist ceased to carve or if their style evolved in a different direction. One tantalizing theory, although impossible to prove, is that the composition of both this work and Family with Fish calls to mind the work of Ennutsiak, who migrated from Nunavik to Baffin Island. Though improbable, it is far from impossible.

Regardless of authorship, what makes this tableau so impressive is the ambition packed into its small scale. We are treated by the artist to a vivid snapshot of daily life, complete with tools, catch, and even a convincing sense of surrounding space. Our eye skips eagerly from one detail to the next, from the pierced stone base that evokes holes in the ice, to the kakivak lifted high with its catch, then over to the woman, already busy, carrying both fish and ulu, the latter soon to be put to use. Most astonishing of all is the tiny ivory hand of the baby tucked inside the woman’s amautiq, a detail so delicate and so unexpected that we cannot recall ever having seen another quite like it.

All together, the abundance of incident gives the work extraordinary life. It feels like a real moment of Arctic existence caught on the wing, full of movement, purpose, and invention.