Reviewed by Lloyd Dykk
All 26 works in the show of Tony Anguhalluq, on view at the Marion Scott Gallery until April 29, sold out even before it opened.
One Nova Scotia collector wanted all of the pieces, priced at $500 each, but several work had already been spoken for. This would seem to contradict curator Robert Kardosh’s claim that people have been predicting the demise of Inuit art for a long time. Fortunately, as he puts it, “it’s proven more resilient than anticipated.”
But it is surprising for the 37-year old Anguhalluq, considering his relative newness to art. He’d shown little interest in it before he was encouraged to join a two-year printmaking workshop in the small community of Baker Lake in 1995 (the art program was revived after being dispensed with in favour of a grocery store). He took to art right away, in keeping with, as Kardosh describes him, “the type of guy who’ll try anything – he’s courageous that way.”
