Beauty Beyond Bounds: Contemporary Alaska Native & Canadian Inuit Art in Circumpol
As political tensions rise, it’s easy to focus on what divides us: the borders on maps, the policies that dictate who and what can cross them, and at what cost.
It’s natural to get caught up in the differences, in the fractures, in the idea that we are moving further apart but art reminds us that connection endures. It carries stories that outlast politics, speaking in a language deeper than trade agreements and stronger than territorial disputes.
It was this idea, the tension between separation and connection, between difference and shared experience, that inspired Beauty Beyond Bounds: Contemporary Alaska Native & Canadian Inuit Art in Circumpolar Contexts.
This exhibition explores the evolving traditions of Alaska Native and Canadian Inuit artists, whose work challenges the very notion of boundaries, proving that art moves freely even when the world insists on drawing lines. While the mid-20th century saw these traditions diverge, Inuit artists in Canada embracing stone carving and printmaking while Alaska Native artists explored materials like hardwoods and precious metals, the connections between them never disappeared. Across time and distance, works remained in conversation, shaped by shared histories, environments, and artistic ingenuity.