GEORGE ARLUK
Place of Birth: Winnipeg, Manitoba
Resides: Arviat; also lived in Baker Lake, Rankin Inlet
Sculpture
Arluk began to teach himself how to carve soapstone at age 9. In the1960s he was influenced by sculptors Tiktak and Kavik and John Pangnark. By the mid-1970s he had developed a unique style of semi-abstraction. He
depicts single figures such as hunters and mothers with babies in their hoods. Most often he groups figures together to form abstracted compositions of gently curving forms that undulate rythmically. His sculptures often have antler parts added that protrude in complex patterns from the stone.
His father Sevuoi Aiyarani was also carver. His brother Charlie Panigoniak a well known singer, song-writer in the north.
EXHIBITIONS:
January - March 1972 Eskimo Fantastic Art
Gallery 111, School of Art,
University of Manitoba
Winnipeg, Manitoba
(tour)
(illustrated catalogue)
1974 Inuit Sculpture 1974/Sculpture Inuit 1974
Lippel Gallery
Montreal, Quebec
(illustrated catalogue)
March - July 1976 The Mulders' Collection of Eskimo Sculpture
Winnipeg Art Gallery
Winnipeg, Manitoba
(illustrated catalogue)
August - September 1977 Two Artists - Sculpture/Arlook,
Drawings/Qarlisaq
Image of the Inuit
Contempo Westwood Centre
Los Angeles, California, U.S.A.
March - June 1978 The Coming and Going of the Shaman:
Eskimo Shamanism and Art
Winnipeg Art Gallery
Winnipeg, Manitoba
(illustrated catalogue)
August - November 1978 The Zazelenchuk Collection of Eskimo Art
Winnipeg Art Gallery
Winnipeg, Manitoba
(illustrated catalogue)
March - April 1979 Sculpture of the Inuit: Lorne Balshine
Collection/Lou Osipov Collection/
Dr. Harry Winrob Collection
Surrey Art Gallery
Surrey, British Columbia
(illustrated catalogue)
July 1979 - May 1980 Inuit Art in the 1970s
Department of Indian Affairs
and Northern Development, and the
Agnes Etherington Art Centre
Kingston, Ontario
(tour)
(illustrated catalogue)
November - December 1979 In Celebration
Canadian Guild of Crafts Quebec
Montreal, Quebec
January - February 1980 Inuit Master Artists of the 1970s
Inuit Gallery of Vancouver
Vancouver, British Columbia
February - April 1981 Rankin Inlet/Kangirlliniq
Winnipeg Art Gallery
Winnipeg, Manitoba
(illustrated catalogue)
September - October 1981 The Jacqui and Morris Shumiatcher
Collection of Inuit Art
Norman Mackenzie Art Gallery,
University of Regina
Regina, Saskatchewan
(illustrated catalogue)
April 1982 Sculpture Inuit: Stone/Bone
circa 1960-1979
Canadiana Galleries
Edmonton, Alberta
October - December 1982 Collector's Choice: 1965-1980
Inuit Gallery of Vancouver
Vancouver, British Columbia
(illustrated catalogue)
April - May 1986 Sixty Diminutive Eskimo Carvings
Images of the North
San Francisco, California
May - June 1986 The Spirit of the Land
The Koffler Gallery
Toronto, Ontario
(illustrated brochure)
May - June 1987 [Inuit Art Exhibition]
Whitby Arts Incorporated,
The Station Gallery
Whitby, Ontario
July - November 1987 Useful Bits of Bone
Winnipeg Art Gallery
Winnipeg, Manitoba
September 1987 The Williamson Collection of
Inuit Sculpture
Norman Mackenzie Art Gallery,
University of Regina
Regina, Saskatchewan
(tour)
(illustrated catalogue)
September - November 1987 The Swinton Collection of Inuit Art
Winnipeg Art Gallery
Winnipeg, Manitoba
(illustrated catalogue)
October 1987 [L'art inuit]
Presented by l'Iglou Art Esquimau, Douai
at Chambre de Commerce de Chateauroux
France
November - December 1987 Art Inuit
Canadian Guild of Crafts Quebec
Montreal, Quebec
December 1987 - February 1988 Inuk, Inuit: Art et tradition chez les
esquimaux d'hier et d'aujourd'hui
presented by L'Iglou Art Esquimau, Douai,
at Musee des Beaux-arts d'Arras
Arras, France
(illustrated catalogue)
April 1988 [L'art inuit]
Presented by l'Iglou Art Esquimau, Douai
at Palais de L'Europe, Le Touquet
France
July 1988 [L'art inuit]
Presented by l'Iglou Art Esquimau, Douai
at Chapelle de la Visitation, Thonon
France
November 1988 [L'art inuit]
Presented by l'Iglou Art Esquimau, Douai
at Les Martres-de-Veyre
France
November 1988 Primitive Art from the Arctic
Arctic Artistry
Hartsdale, New York, U.S.A.
December 1988 [L'art inuit]
Presented by l'Iglou Art Esquimau, Douai
at Galerie des Tanneurs, Mulhouse
France
February - March 1989 [L'art inuit]
Presented by l'Iglou Art Esquimau, Douai
at St. Marcellin
France
March - April 1989 [L'art inuit]
Presented by l'Iglou Art Esquimau, Douai
at Galerie Autre Regard, Paris
France
April 1989 Legacy in Stone: Carvings from
the Canadian Arctic
Four Winds Gallery
Sydney, Australia
(illustrated brochure)
June - July 1989 Art Inuit
Presented by l'Iglou Art Esquimau, Douai
at Galerie Sanguine, La Rochelle
France
July - September 1989 Mother and Child: Selections from the
Inuit Collection of the Art Gallery
of Ontario
Art Gallery of Ontario
Toronto, Ontario
August 1989 Arviat: Eskimo Point
Marion Scott Gallery
Vancouver, British Columbia
(illustrated catalogue)
October 1989 Art Inuit, Sculpture des Esquimaux
du Canada
Presented by l'Iglou Art Esquimau, Douai
at Galerie La Poutre, Marseille
France
December 1989 Art Inuit, la Sculpture des Esquimaux du Canada
Presented by l'Iglou Art Esquimau, Douai
at Les Chiroux, Centre Culturel de la Wallonie,
Liege
Belgium
January - September 1990 Arctic Mirror
Canadian Museum of Civilization
Hull, Quebec
February - March 1990 Beeldhouwkunst van de Inuit (Canada)
by l'Iglou Art Esquimau, Douai, France
at Amphora Finippon pvba, Sint Andries,
Brugge, Belgium
June - July 1990 Small Sculptures from across the
Canadian Arctic
Feheley Fine Arts
Toronto, Ontario
August 1990 Traditions and Innovations in Inuit Art
Sculpture in Stone
Images of the North
San Francisco, California, U.S.A.
(illustrated brochure)
November - December 1990 Art Inuit: Autour de la Collection de Cape
Dorset 1990
Presented by l'Iglou Art Esquimau, Douai
at Centre Culturel Canadien
Paris, France
November 1990 - February 1991 Espaces Inuit
Maison Hamel-Bruneau
Ste-Foy, Quebec
(illustrated catalogue)
January 1991 Bears of the North
Snow Goose Associates
Seattle, Washington, U.S.A.
April - June 1991 Art Inuit
Presented by l'Iglou Art Esquimau, Douai
at Galerie La Tour des Cardinaux
L'Isle sur la Sorgue, France
June - July 1991 Art Inuit
Presented by l'Iglou Art Esquimau, Douai
at Galerie Ombre et Lumiere
Ensisheim, France
August - September 1991 Art Inuit
Presented by l'Iglou Art Esquimau, Douai
at Galerie Akenaton
Troyes, France
October - December 1991 Art Inuit
Presented by l'Iglou Art Esquimau, Douai
at Galerie Maite Aubert
Le Havre, France
October 1992 - January 1993 Drawings and Sculpture from Baker Lake
Winnipeg Art Gallery
Winnipeg, Manitoba
(illustrated brochure)
April - July 1993 Multiple Realities: Inuit Images of
Shamanic Transformation
Winnipeg Art Gallery
Winnipeg, Manitoba
(illustrated brochure)
September - November 1993 The Bear: Sculpture
Albers Gallery
San Francisco, California, U.S.A.
November 1993 - March 1994 The Inuit Imagination
Winnipeg Art Gallery
Winnipeg, Manitoba
July 1994 Arctic Spirit
35 Years of Canadian Inuit Art
Frye Art Museum
Seattle, Washington, U.S.A.
September - October 1994 Kunst van de Inuit Eskimo's
Gemeentelijk Kunstcentrum
Huis Hellemans
Edegem, Belgium
(illustrated brochure)
SOLO EXHIBITIONS:
1968 Sculpture by George Arlook
Winnipeg Art Gallery
Winnipeg, Manitoba
1969 George Arlook Sculpture
University of Alberta
Edmonton, Alberta
December 1972 Sculpture by Arlook of Rankin Inlet
The Innuit Gallery of Eskimo Art
Toronto, Ontario
July - August 1979 George Arlook - The Song in the Stone
Images of the North
San Francisco, California, U.S.A.
(illustrated catalogue)
July - August 1980 George Arluk - Sculpture
Canadian Guild of Crafts Quebec
Montreal, Quebec
(illustrated catalogue)
January 1982 George Arluk
Inuit Galerie
Mannheim, Germany
(illustrated catalogue)
December 1988 Abstract in Stone
Northern Reflections Eskimo Art Gallery
La Jolla, California, U.S.A.
December 1992 George Arluk
Inuit Galerie
Mannheim, Germany
December 1993 - January 1994 The Sculpture of George Arlook
Richard Rapfogel Fine Arts
Saint Louis, Missouri, U.S.A.
COLLECTIONS:
Amway Environmental Foundation Collection, Ada, Michigan, U.S.A.
Art Gallery of Ontario, Toronto, Ontario
Canadian Guild of Crafts Quebec, Montreal, Quebec
Eskimo Museum, Churchill, Manitoba
Inuit Cultural Institute, Rankin Inlet, Northwest Territories
Klamer Family Collection, Art Gallery of Ontario, Toronto, Ontario
Mendel Art Gallery, Saskatoon, Saskatchewan
Musee des beaux-arts de Montreal, Montreal, Quebec
Museum of Anthropology, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, British Columbia
National Gallery of Canada, Ottawa, Ontario
Prince of Wales Northern Heritage Centre, Yellowknife, Northwest Territories
Red Deer and District Museum and Archives, Red Deer, Alberta
Sarick Collection, Art Gallery of Ontario, Toronto, Ontario
University of Lethbridge Art Gallery, Lethbridge, Alberta
Vancouver Art Gallery, Vancouver, British Columbia
Williamson Collection, Art Gallery of Ontario, Toronto, Ontario
Winnipeg Art Gallery, Winnipeg, Manitoba
HONOURS, ACHIEVEMENTS AND EVENTS:
1972 Received a Canada Council travel grant to attend the opening of his
solo exhibition at the Innuit Gallery of Eskimo Art in Toronto.
1987 Commissioned to create a sculpture to be auctioned with all proceeds going
to the Keith Rawlings Memorial Scholarship Fund; the monies raised to be used to assist northern native students to careers in business.
1988 Attended the opening of his solo exhibition 'Abstract in Stone' in La Jolla,California.
1991 George presented a carving demonstration at the Winnipeg Folk Festival in July.
1993 The Inuit Galerie of Mannheim, Germany, features reproductions of Arluk's
sculpture in their 1993 calender.
1993 Attended Greater Columbus Arts Festival in Ohio (June 2-6, 1993) to give a carving demonstration.
SELECTED REFERENCES:
Blodgett, Jean
THE COMING AND GOING OF THE SHAMAN: Eskimo Shamanism and Art.
Winnipeg: Winnipeg Art Gallery, 1979.
Brandson, Lorraine E.
CARVED FROM THE LAND: The Eskimo Museum Collection. Churchill,
Man.: Diocese of Churchill Hudson Bay, 1994.
Canadian Arctic Producers
GEORGE ARLUK: Sculpture. Ottawa: Canadian Arctic Producers
Cooperative Limited, 1980.
Canadian Guild of Crafts Quebec
CANADIAN GUILD OF CRAFTS QUEBEC. = GUILDE CANADIENNE DES METIERS
D'ART QUEBEC: The Permanent Collection: Inuit Arts and Crafts,
c. 1900-1980. Montreal: Canadian Guild of Crafts Quebec, 1980.
Gagnon, Louis
ESPACES INUIT: Dessins et Sculpture. Sainte-Foy, Quebec:
Maison Hamel-Bruneau, 1990.
Images of the North
GEORGE ARLUK: The Song in Stone. San Francisco: Images of the
North, 1979.
Inuit Galerie
GEORGE ARLUK. Mannheim, F.D.R.: Inuit Galerie, 1987.
Inuit Galerie
GEORGE ARLUK. Mannheim, Federal Republic of Germany : Inuit
Galerie, 1981.
Lippel Gallery Inc.
INUIT SCULPTURE 1974/SCULPTURE INUIT 1974. Montreal: Lippel
Gallery Inc, 1974.
Marion Scott Gallery
ARVIAT: Eskimo Point. Vancouver: Marion Scott Ltd, 1989.
Norman Mackenzie Art Gallery
THE JACQUI AND MORRIS SHUMIATCHER COLLECTION OF INUIT ART.
Regina: The Norman Mackenzie Art Gallery, 1981.
Routledge, Marie
INUIT ART IN THE 1970s/L'ART INUIT ACTUEL: 1970-79. Kingston,
Ont. : The Agnes Etherington Art Centre, 1979.
Seidelman, Harold and James Turner
THE INUIT IMAGINATION: Arctic Myth and Sculpture.
Vancouver/Toronto: Douglas & McIntyre, 1993.
Surrey Art Gallery
SCULPTURE OF THE INUIT: Lorne Balshine Collection/Lou Osipov
Collection/Dr. Harry Winrob Collection. Surrey: The Surrey Art
Gallery, 1978.
Swinton, George
ESKIMO SCULPTURE. = SCULPTURE ESQUIMAUDE. Toronto: McClelland
and Stewart, 1965.
Swinton, George
SCULPTURE OF THE ESKIMO. Toronto: McClelland and Stewart, 1972.
Wight, D.
GEORGE ARLUK: IN The Canadian Encyclopedia, James H. Marsh,
editor-in-chief. Edmonton: Hurtig Publishers, 1:90, 1985.
Winnipeg Art Gallery
RANKIN INLET/KANGIRLLINIQ. Winnipeg: The Winnipeg Art Gallery,
1981.
Winnipeg Art Gallery
SWINTON COLLECTION OF INUIT ART. Winnipeg Art Gallery, 1987.
Winnipeg Art Gallery
THE MULDERS' COLLECTION OF ESKIMO SCULPTURE. Winnipeg: The
Winnipeg Art Gallery, 1976.
Winnipeg Art Gallery
THE ZAZELENCHUK COLLECTION OF ESKIMO ART. Winnipeg: The
Winnipeg Art Gallery, 1978.