Matiusie came to sculpture in earnest relatively late in life. Though he had experimented with carving as a teenager, it was not until his thirties, after years of other work, including a job as a police officer, that he was able to give himself over to art making fully. A Canada Council grant made that leap possible and set the course for his career as an artist. He quickly established himself as a major talent and is particularly admired for works that combine a variety of materials to wonderfully imaginative effect.

To our eye, Iqalullamiluuq Dancing to her Own Beautiful Music is among the artist’s most exuberant and theatrical works. Here, the figure’s rounded, swelling body is carved from luminous green stone, polished to a beautiful high sheen. Set into the body on either side are large sections of antler tine that form arms that lift and cant outward in a dancing gesture, while the great palmated section of antler projecting from her midsection surges forward as something between instrument, motion, and music made tangible.

ND