KENOJUAK ASHEVAK, C.C., R.C.A. (1927-2013) KINNGAIT (CAPE DORSET)
Untitled (7-62), 1962
Plate: 8 1/4 x 11 7/8 in (21 x 30.2 cm)
Sheet: 12 3/4 x 19 in (32.4 x 48.3 cm)
Sheet: 12 3/4 x 19 in (32.4 x 48.3 cm)
etching
In his foreword to the 1962 Cape Dorset print collection, Terry Ryan wrote, “This catalogue introduces in part a new attempt in graphic expression by the artists of Cape Dorset....
In his foreword to the 1962 Cape Dorset print collection, Terry Ryan wrote,
“This catalogue introduces in part a new attempt in graphic expression by the artists of Cape Dorset. In past years, these artists of Dorset, known for their success in stonecut and stencil prints, have progressed to a point where they have been able to take with apparent enthusiasm the illustrated medium of copper engraving and etching. There was a need felt in past years [...] for a graphic medium that would allow the creative artist to draw directly onto the plate [...]” [1].
As Ryan intimates, the etching process sees the artist sketching lightly on a waxed, metal plate with a stylus. As such, the final creation is much like a drawing. The immediacy of line afforded by etching is well suited to display the agitation of the imaginative scene in the present print, "Untitled (7-62)." This work was given to Kenojuak in the 1962 catalogue but was likely drawn in conjunction with her husband Johnniebo [2].
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1. Terry Ryan, “Some Notes on the Cape Dorset Prints,” Canadian Eskimo Art Committee, '1962 Eskimo graphic art,' [s.l., Ottawa?, 1962], unpaginated.
2. Dorothy Eber, “Looking for the Artists of Dorset in Eskimo Art,” 'Canadian Forum' (July/August 1972), p. 14
“This catalogue introduces in part a new attempt in graphic expression by the artists of Cape Dorset. In past years, these artists of Dorset, known for their success in stonecut and stencil prints, have progressed to a point where they have been able to take with apparent enthusiasm the illustrated medium of copper engraving and etching. There was a need felt in past years [...] for a graphic medium that would allow the creative artist to draw directly onto the plate [...]” [1].
As Ryan intimates, the etching process sees the artist sketching lightly on a waxed, metal plate with a stylus. As such, the final creation is much like a drawing. The immediacy of line afforded by etching is well suited to display the agitation of the imaginative scene in the present print, "Untitled (7-62)." This work was given to Kenojuak in the 1962 catalogue but was likely drawn in conjunction with her husband Johnniebo [2].
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1. Terry Ryan, “Some Notes on the Cape Dorset Prints,” Canadian Eskimo Art Committee, '1962 Eskimo graphic art,' [s.l., Ottawa?, 1962], unpaginated.
2. Dorothy Eber, “Looking for the Artists of Dorset in Eskimo Art,” 'Canadian Forum' (July/August 1972), p. 14