We regret that this print arrived just after the close of the recent Arctic Winter Games in Whitehorse.

Launched in 1970, the Arctic Winter Games bring together familiar sports alongside several events unique to the Arctic. Many of these contests are rooted in hunting and survival techniques once practiced to build strength, balance, and endurance. Today, the Games stand among the largest multisport cultural events in the circumpolar North, drawing approximately 2,000 participants.

Discussing the original drawing for the present print in Marie Routledge and Marion E. Jackson, Pudlo: Thirty Years of Drawing (Ottawa: National Gallery of Canada, 1990), p. 128, pl. 55, Pudlo remarked, “‘I remember thinking of Christmas when I drew this… There are children playing, there’s the audience, and it’s decorated too.’” The authors go on to suggest that "the scene is probably set in the present-day school gymnasium, where special events such as Christmas gatherings are often held. The children are playing with a ball, and the round form suspended just above them at right may be a basketball hoop."