Toonoo Tunnillie (1920–1969) was an Inuit artist and the father of notable artist Oviloo Tunnillie.[1]
Toonoo Tunnillie | |
|---|---|
| Born | 1920 |
| Died | 1969 (aged 48–49) |
Biography
editToonoo was the youngest of five children, many of whom passed away at a young age.[2] Little is known about his teenage years, however by the late 1950s he was earning a living as a well-respected carver primarily selling to fur traders in the Cape Dorset area.[2] He became one of the earliest Inuit artists to achieve prominence for his sculpture outside of the Canadian North.[2]
Tunnillie was a major influence on his daughter Oviloo, inspiring her own interest in carving.[2] Following the birth of his children, Toonoo supported his family through carving primarily serpentinite stone.[2] In 1959, he was hospitalized in Southern Canada for nearly a year, for unknown reasons.[2] In 1966, Toonoo sold his daughter's work through a Hudson's Bay Company trading post several kilometer's away from the family's home, marking the start of her formal artistic career.[2]
Tunnillie's wife Sheojuke was also an artist, known for printmaking.[1][3]
During a hunting trip in 1969 with his brother-in-law Mikkigak Kingwatsiak, Toonoo perished in what was believed to be a hunting accident, but later revealed to be murder.[2][1]
Major exhibitions
edit- Coronation Exhibition, Gimpel Fils London (1953)
- Canadian Eskimo Art, organized by the Department of Northern Affairs of National Resources (1954)
Collections
editReferences
edit- ^ a b c "Toonoo's Legacy". Feheley Fine Arts - Inuit Art Gallery. 2002-11-01. Retrieved 2023-09-08.
- ^ a b c d e f g h Coward Wight, Darlene (2019). Oviloo Tunnillie: Life & Work. Art Canada Institute. ISBN 9781487101978.
- ^ "New book puts spotlight on celebrated Cape Dorset carver". Nunatsiaq News. 2019-04-26. Retrieved 2023-09-08.