Vintage Josie Papialuk (1918-1996) Bird Stone Carving sale - Signed E 9-861- First Generation Inuit Artist

A wonderful vintage stone bird carving created by internationally recognized Inuit artist Josie (Pappy/Puppy) Papialuk (1918-1996). Josie was noted for his imaginative drawings, prints and carvings. Birds were one of his favored subjects and they always characterized by an element of joy and enthusiasm.

This miniature in grey stone and satin finish has many of the wonderful aspects of Josie's carvings, including two feet (see below for details on one versus two feet)

Inscribed with Josie's name and disc number on the underside.

Weight: 661 grams (1 pound 7.3 ounces). This is the larger of two bird carvings I have by Josie.

Dimensions: 5" long x 4.5" high x 2" wide

About the Artist

First Name: Josie Last Name: Papialuk Community: Puvirnituq Sex: M

Born: 1918 Place of Birth: near Issuksiuvit Lake Died: 1996. Disc number: E9-861

Alternate Names PAPIALUK, Josie Pamiutu, Pamitu, Paperk, Josie, Jusi, Pappy, Puppy, Papirk, Josie P.

Known for: Sculpture, Drawings, Prints

Josie Pamiutu Papialuk, known also as "Josie Paperk" or simply "Puppy," was born in 1918 just inland from the community of Puvirnituq which is located on the Eastern shore of Hudson Bay in far northern Quebec.

After the death of his wife Martha in 1975, Josie continued to live there with his only surviving son, Peter Papiluk. His brother is artist Isah Papialuk.
Josie was an extremely well known artist in southern art circles. He produced drawings, carvings and prints. He was one of the first Povungnituk artists to become involved in printmaking in the early 1960s. Initially, he produced small, whimsical soapstone carvings of birds, fish and human heads.

Josie was regarded in the community as an eccentric joker. His art was described as a special kind of genius: it revealed both his profound sense of observation and a keen insight.

Many elements of Josie's unique style were already apparent in some of his early carvings: he would scratch footprints to indicate past or future directions, and add captions to explain the action.

In both his carvings and prints, Josie often used undulating lines to depict such invisible phenomena as wind, voices or bird chatter. As one Inuit art expert noted, Josie's inclination towards whimsy did not cloud his artistic judgment. When asked why he sometimes puts only one leg on his birds, Josie answered "I put the second leg on when I need the extra money”. * ( see above)

From 1962 to 1989, his prints were part of the Povungnituk Print Collection annual collection for 20 out of those 28 years. Over the course of his career, Josie's prints, drawings and sculptures were included in over 65 regional, national and international exhibitions and four solo exhibitions, a remarkable feat for any artist.

COLLECTIONS:
1. Art Gallery of Nova Scotia, Halifax, Nova Scotia
2. Art Gallery of York University, Downsview, Ontario
3. Avataq Cultural Institute, Montreal, Quebec
4. Canadian Guild of Crafts Quebec, Montreal, Quebec
5. Canadian Museum of Civilization, Hull, Quebec
6. Confederation des caisses populaires et d'economie Desjardins, Levis, Quebec
7. Dennos Museum Center, Northwestern Michigan College, Traverse City, Michigan, U.S.A.
8. Eskimo Museum, Churchill, Manitoba
9. Glenbow Museum, Calgary, Alberta
10. Macdonald Stewart Art Centre, Guelph, Ontario
11. McMichael Canadian Art Collection, Kleinburg, Ontario
12. Ministere des affaires culturelles du Quebec, Quebec City, Quebec
13. Musée de la civilisation, Quebec City, Quebec
14. Musée des beaux-arts de Montreal, Montreal, Quebec
15. Musée du Quebec, Quebec City, Quebec
16. Museum of Anthropology, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, British Columbia
17. National Gallery of Canada, Ottawa, Ontario
18. Red Deer College, Red Deer, Alberta
19. Saputik Museum, Povungnituk, Quebec
20. University of Lethbridge Art Gallery, Lethbridge, Alberta
21. Winnipeg Art Gallery, Winnipeg, Manitoba
22. York University, Toronto, Ontario

Josie's work has been exhibited in several important exhibitions since 1962.
sale
1 Marion Scott, JOSIE PAPERK, (Vancouver: Marion Scott Galleries), 1983.
2 G. Mainprize and P. Brooks, Interview with the artist, Povungnituk,
September 1981.



EXHIBITIONS:
1962, 1964, 1965, 1966, 1968, Povungnituk Print Collection
1970, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1976, annual collection
1977, 1978, 1980, 1982, 1983,
1984, 1985, 1986, 1987, 1989