Inuuqatikka: my dear relations
Through the films and video work of the Arnait Video Productions, Inuuqatikka: my dear relations brings focus to the kin-centered outlook of Inuit women in the Arctic. Inspired by the spaces in which women gather, the “white cube” gallery space has been re-envisioned as the interior of a white canvas tupik (tent), with uyarait (rocks) lining the perimeter to keep the wind and cold out and the qulliq (oil lamp) lit to keep families warm.
The films are the result of women collaborating and creating stories, united in sharing their distinct life experiences. They reveal the process of filmmaking, oral traditions and conversations across families and generations. These are enhanced, in this exhibition, by content drawn from the Arnait Video Productions archival collection.
This exhibition is a living archive and is part of Arnait’s March 2020 artist residency at the Vulnerable Media Lab, which will include intergenerational dialogues, workshops, and screenings. Over the course of the exhibition, the content will change in response to conversations with the collective.
Curated by Nakasuk Alariaq (Inuk-Cape Dorset/London, ON), Linda Grussani (Algonquin Anishinabekwe-Ottawa, ON) and Tamara de Szegheo Lang (Kingston, ON).
Resources
- Bertrand, Karine. Le Collectif Arnait Video Productions et Le Cinéma Engagé Des Femmes Inuits : Guérison Communautaire et Mémoire Culturelle. Canadian Review of Comparative Literature / Revue Canadienne de Littérature Comparée 2017, 44 (1), 36–53. https://doi.org/10.1353/crc.2017.0002.
- Mackenzie, Scott; Stenport, Anna. Arnait Video Productions: Inuit Women’s Collective Filmmaking, Coalitional Politics, and a Globalized Arctic. Camera Obscura 2016, No. 93. permalink
- Chisholm, Dianne; Rodon, Thierry; Nagy, Murielle; Fletcher, Christopher; Riva, Mylène. The Enduring Afterlife of Before Tomorrow: Inuit Survivance and the Spectral Cinema of Arnait Video Productions. Études/Inuit/Studies 2015, 40 (1), 211–227. https://doi.org/10.7202/1040152ar