KENOJUAK ASHEVAK, C.C., R.C.A. (1927-2013) KINNGAIT (CAPE DORSET)
Thoughts of The Owl, 2011
Weaver: OLASSIE AKULUKJUK (1951-) PANNIRTUQ (PANGNIRTUNG)
wool and cotton thread, 45 x 60 in (114.3 x 152.4 cm)
inscribed on verso, "#485 Thoughts of the owl / 45 H x 59.5 W / Kenojuak Ashevak / Olassie Akulukjuk / Panignirtung Nunavut Canada / Pangnirtung Tapestry Studio", stamped in ink on verso with Pangnirtung Tapestries studio stamp.
4/5

Provenance
Inuit Gallery of Vancouver;
Acquired from the above by John and Joyce Price, Seattle.

Thoughts of the Owl is an interpretation of an original drawing by Kenojuak Ashevak (see introductory page), a rare collaboration between the weaving studio in Pangnirtung and a guest artist. The weaving programme began in 1970, giving a new application for the tenacious patience and attention to detail honed in the making of traditional Inuit clothing. As with the print programmes in various Inuit communities, the weaving programme based its imagery on drawings by local artists, and even if several were made of the same imagery, each piece was unique due to the variations in colour and hand-made execution.

This tapestry highlights the talents of the weaver through the successful interpretation of Kenojuak’s original drawing. The bold outlines of the drawing, typical of Kenojuak’s style, are recreated perfectly despite the softer nature of wool. In her original drawings Kenojuak would often create the illusion of texture by patiently filling in areas with minute marks, creating a subtle sense of depth. In Thoughts of the Owl, the weaver has alternated pink and blue threads in the wings of the flanking birds to capture this effect. The result is a magnificent tapestry that combines Kenojuak’s masterful, vibrant imagery with various skillfully woven interpretations (much as a Cape Dorset printmaker might do) to create a unique and stunning work of art.

References: For an overview of Pangnirtung’s weaving history, see Maria von Finckenstein ed., Nuvisavik: The Place Where We Weave, (Hull, QC: Canadian Museum of Civilization & McGill-Queen's University Press, 2022). For more information on Kenojuak, see Jean Blodgett, Kenojuak, (Toronto: Firefly Books / Mintmark Press Ltd., 1985); Anna Hudson, Jocelyn Piirainen, & Georgiana Uhlyarik, Tunirrusiangit: Kenojuak Ashevak and Tim Pitsiulak, exh. cat., (Toronto: Art Gallery of Ontario, 2018); Odette Leroux ed., Inuit Women Artists (Vancouver: Douglas & McIntyre / Gatineau: Canadian Museum of Civilization, 1994).