A Board of Directors Comprised of Artists...
Directors also act as unpaid ambassadors in their home communities, distributing promotional material, serving as information conduits, and promoting the foundation's work.
Approximately half of the foundation's budget is covered by annual contributions from Indian & Northern Affairs, Canada (INAC). The balance comes from private donations, project grants, and cost recoveries on the magazine and the Inuit Artists' Shop.
A New Model for Delivering Assistance to Artists...
Beginning with the 1986 launch of Inuit Art Quarterly (IAQ) magazine, the Inuit Art Foundation (IAF) was formally incorporated in 1989, as the first Aboriginal arts service organization in Canada.
The foundation's Inuktitut name is Ikiyuktit (helpers), which reflects the operating philosophy that artists themselves are to be involved to the greatest extent possible in making decisions.
In practice, this has resulted in a board of directors comprised entirely of practising Inuit artists and northern cultural workers who ensure that programs are relevant and that the foundation keeps pace with the needs and resources of its constituents.
The foundation offers professional development services to Inuit artists and assists with such community initiatives as workshops and the obtaining of materials and tools.
Publishing has been augmented with the creation of such websites as Inuit Art Alive.ca, that draw on IAF's extensive archive of slides and texts.
The foundation's own site has become a first destination for collectors and researchers at all levels.
Although IAF has always operated with scant resources, it is clear that progress has been made in terms of establishing a different model for delivering assistance to artists.
The foundation's practise is to work with the artists themselves, making it possible for them to manage their own affairs and solve their own problems.
A key premise of IAF is that nothing will change until artists organize to help themselves.
In summary, IAF has established an entirely new relationship with Inuit, one based firmly on collaboration.
Not only do artists own and control IAF, but they are also setting up regional and local artists associations and taking greater control of their personal destinies.
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| Watch the IAF corporate video |
Watch the IAF corporate video |
Public Events...
The foundation has organized several art festivals and symposia to connect artists and the public over the years, which, in spite of costs, have succeeded in promoting the art and broadening artists' networks.
The first public festival was Qaqqiq '95, held at the Canadian Museum of Civilization. More than 15,000 people attended.
In 1996, a three day cultural festival was held at Saint Paul's University in Ottawa.
Annual Arts Alive public events, which included art-making demonstrations, were subsequently held in Ottawa.
A Voice for Artists and Academics...
Launched in 1986, Inuit Art Quarterly (IAQ) was the first project of the Inuit Art Foundation.
Founding editor, Marybelle Mitchell, who had worked for several years in arts and crafts development for Nunavik cooperatives, was contracted in 1985 by an advisory committee struck by INAC to launch a newsletter dedicated to the art of Canadian Inuit.
With a grant of $49,000, and working out of her home, Mitchell created a sixteen-page newsletter dedicated to Inuit art.
IAQ gives a voice to artists' and provides international exposure for their art.
Publishing functions were subsumed by IAF when it was incorporated in 1989.
The IAQ editorial advisory committee became the foundation's first board of directors. Mitchell served as the Executive Director.
It has also had an impact on scholarly work in the field, and provided a vehicle for the publication of academic theses and original research.
Professional Development for Artists...
The Inuit Art Foundation delivers professional development services through the Inuit Artists' College, a campus without walls, which was established in 1991.
The college has organized workshops and seminars for artists in Ottawa, which focussed on marketing and promotion, safety issues, and the history of Inuit art, as well as including studio time at the Ottawa School of Art. The college also delivered workshops on the use of power tools, printmaking, and quarrying in northern communities.
This was an opportunity for artists from all over to work together in a stimulating environment and to experiment with new techniques and media. Beginning in the mid-nineties, the college ran a three to six-month Cultural Industries Training Program (CITP) for Inuit living in Ontario. This terminated after 12 years. CITP was replaced with Cultural Industries Certificate Program (CICP), a program intented for northern cultural workers.
The college has also developed an innovative body of educational materials for widespread distribution to Inuit artists, including instructional videos, workbooks, posters, and a series of comic books.
Credited with being the first agency to provide this kind of education to Inuit artists, IAF was contracted to develop similar seminars for indigenous artists in Siberia.
National Inuit Artists' Centre (NiAC)
The Inuit Artists' College has now turned to the web to ensure that updated information on specific matters of interest is available to Inuit artists wherever they live.
The National Inuit Artists Centre (NIAC) site contains information for artists on quarrying, tools, marketing, health and safety, and other issues.
Artist education is also provided through the web-based Inuit Art Histories.
Overcoming isolation and inspiring Inuit artists to build on the accomplishments of their forbearers, these productions are also of interest to southern researchers and collectors.
Inuit Art Alive.ca, the first Inuit Art Histories web project, was launched in June 2009.
Inuit Art Alive.ca was followed by Inukjuak Art History.
The first regional art history, Nunavik Art Alive.ca, is in the works.
Looking to the Future...
Most arctic communities lack easy access to art galleries, catalogues, and art schools. This is compounded by the fact that most locally-produced artwork is exported with little documentation.
By digitally repatriating art images and historical information to the North, these web-based art histories respond to a desire expressed by local artists and cultural workers for documentation of their community's artistic heritage.
IAF sees the Internet as a cost-efficient way to document art histories and to connect artists with each other and with the southern art community.