Posted by: patbirder
on Jun 29, 2009
An Inuit town on the eastern shores of the Hudson Bay, in Nunavik, Quebec, Inukjuak is situated at the mouth of the Innuksuak River. Like other Inuit communities, a nomadic lifestyle based on going where the fish and game are in order to survive shaped the culture of the people that settled in Inukjuak. Unlike other Inuit groups further north though, the somewhat milder climate may have made life a bit more sedentary. This could explain why detailed domestic scenes and camp activities are such common themes for sculptures from this area. Such depictions are sculpted in a type of mottled green stone found around Inukjuak.
A few hundred kilometers to the south of Inukjuak is Kuujjuaraapik, the southernmost Inuit village in Quebec. Shared with Cree peoples, it is also one of the northernmost Cree settlements in Quebec and is located among sand dunes at the mouth of the Great Whale River. Beautiful argillite stones are used for sculptures with themes similar to those of Inukjuak except fantasy is also commonly incorporated into the works.
Northern / Arctic Travel Blog 
