Additional Images

Provenance:

S. Family Collection, Toronto, ON

Note:

Visually distinctive for its simplified composition and effective use of overlays of colour (a difficult and complicated technique), Niviaxie’s The Archer is a triumph of early Kinngait printmaking, and a testament to the talent of Niviaxie, as well as printmaker Iyola Kingwatsiak.

The reductive forms and directionality in the composition of The Archer are reminiscent of Niviaxie’s other iconic image, Man Hunting at Seal Hole in the Ice from 1959. Little is known about the short career, or the untimely and mysterious death of Niviaxie, although his small oeuvre has held an outsized presence in the early history of Kinngait graphics.

The Archer is one of forty-five works in the present auction from a pioneering and important Toronto collection of Inuit art, the S. Family Collection.

Distinguished by its remarkable diversity, and uniformly high quality, the collection was built on over fifty years of dedication. Acquisitions were made both from the leading dealers and private collectors of the period, as well as directly from artists during several excursions to the north, including to Qamani'tuaq (Baker Lake), and Arviat.

Although the S. Family organized a handful of exhibitions specializing in sculpture, many artworks from their personal collection have remained largely unknown to the collector community. Significant sculptures and graphics come from artists including Davie Atchealak, Ooviloo Tunillie, Parr, John Tiktak, Joe Talirunili, Kiugak Ashoona, Nuna Parr, Aqjangajuk Shaa, and Mathew Aqigaaq.