JOHN KAVIK (1897-1993) KANGIQLINIQ (RANKIN INLET)
Woman with Raised Arms, early-mid 1970s
stone, 10 x 7 x 3 in (25.4 x 17.8 x 7.6 cm)
unsigned.

Provenance
Private Collection, Santa Fe, NM.

Woman with Raised Arms strikes a pose that is not just unusual for Kavik; it is a rare sight in Inuit art, period. The woman might be pulling her hood over her head, but we see no evidence of a hood from any angle. Another possibility is that she is adjusting her hair. Either way, her pose has an almost coquettish look about it that is surprisingly charming.

Even for an artist famous for his raw, primal style, Woman with Raised Arms is an extraordinary image. The sculpture makes Kavik’s Standing Figure (Lot 130) look almost refined by comparison. We can think of one really stylistically similar work by the artist, a Mother and Child from the early 1970s (see Walker’s Auctions, May 2018, Lot 77). As with that work, here Kavik obviously strove to give this female figure a naturalistic pose (albeit an unusual one). Furthermore, he chose to clearly define her amautiq parka with its front and rear flaps - another unusual decision since Kavik’s figures are typified by their lack of clothing details. And yet he created a sculpture that is almost excessively brutal in its execution. It is clear to us that the stone used for this work is exceptionally hard. Why Kavik should have chosen it to carve what for him was an especially tricky subject is a mystery to us. He certainly rose to the challenge, though; the sculpture is arresting and quite wonderful.

References: For other examples of the artist’s work see First Arts, July 2020, Lots 81-83; Nov. 2021, Lots 40, 81, 93; June 2022, Lots 37, 68, 104. See also George Swinton, Sculpture of the Inuit, (Toronto: McClelland & Stewart, 1972/92), figs. 639-647, p. 214-215; Norman Zepp, Pure Vision: The Keewatin Spirit, (Regina: Norman Mackenzie Art Gallery, 1986), pp. 108-119; Canadian Eskimo Arts Council, Sculpture / Inuit: Masterworks of the Canadian Arctic, (Toronto: University of Toronto Press, 1971), figs. 102, 223, 284, 291, 322, 346, 359, 386, 397; Ingo Hessel, Inuit Art: An Introduction, (Vancouver: Douglas & McIntyre / New York: Harry Abrams / London: British Museum Press, 1998), figs. 77-78.