Nunarait—Summer Bouquets

Ruth Qaulluaryuk Four Seasons of the Tundra: Fall, Winter, Spring, Summer (1991–92) (Spring detail) Embroidery floss on wool stroud 173 x 119.3 cm © THE ARTIST
Four Seasons of the Tundra: Fall, Winter, Spring, Summer (1991–92)
Ruth Qaulluaryuk’s Four Seasons of the Tundra: Fall, Winter, Spring, Summer (1991–92) beautifully captures the colours of the changing seasons in the North. In this Spring panel, a bed of embroidered leaves emerges from beneath layers of swirling concentric circles as plant life begins to reappear on the tundra after lying dormant under the snow and ice for many months. Qaulluaryuk’s use of variegated embroidery floss gives the impression of light catching on the leaves and a sense of movement in the swirling circles as the colours subtly change shades throughout the lines of stitching. The interplay between texture and colour not only evokes the thawing landscape but also invites viewers to witness the quiet transformation and cyclical rhythms of life on the land.

MICHELLE SONES
Fact Checker


Nicotye Samayualie Kinngait Summer Flowers (2012) Coloured pencil and felt pen on paper © THE ARTIST
Kinngait Summer Flowers (2012)
I love the contrasting black paper and the neon-bright colours of the flowers that graphic artist Nicotye Samayualie has drawn in Kinngait Summer Flowers (2012). To me, this piece is a reminder that summer flowers also flourish and are alive at night, and there’s something special about the quietness of summer evenings. This scene feels a bit otherworldly to me, especially with the two jellyfish-like purple flowers on the right. The orange and bright teal stems and electric pinks and purples of the petals are unusual. Maybe this is how they look in the moonlight and will return to normal colours when the sun comes up. Samayualie is known for her incredibly detailed pieces, and this is no exception. You can see the veins in the leaves and flower petals, rendered in various shades of green. I feel like I can almost smell these flowers.

MELISSA KAWAGUCHI
Associate Editor


Kanayuq Keep growing (2021) © THE ARTIST
Keep growing (2021)
At first glance, Kanayuq’s Keep growing (2021) feels like a celebration of personal growth. There’s something hopeful about the way the brightly coloured flowers bloom from the top of the subject’s head, vibrant against a backdrop of darkness. They also cover her eyes, possibly suggesting how our thoughts can shape how we see the world, or even how beauty can come from within. While my eyes are immediately drawn to the bright flowers, it’s the details that keep me looking. Kanayuq has used tunniit and clothing to root her in culture, while the black, white and red on the necklace look so much like real seed beads that I almost want to reach out and run my fingers over them. With this piece, Kanayuq reminds us that strength, resilience and beauty bloom within us.

CARLY BROOKS
Assistant Editor and Copy Editor


Christina Dunbar Untitled (2024) Caribou tufted earrings on hide with pearls and seed beads © THE ARTIST
Untitled (2024)
Everything about these earrings says spring to me. Featuring an inky, indigo purple-blue with a cotton candy pink set against the buttery cinnamon beige of a light moose hide and accented with easter egg mints and lemons, Christine Dunbar’s colour choices here both show off her abilities with contrast and provide a perfect backdrop to the signature pinks and golds that are almost always included in her work—they’re her favourite colours and mine.

These highly textural pieces showcase so many different types of jewellery skills, from tufting to working with hide, beading to wirework. I love how the tie-dyed look of the caribou hair tufted flower petals on these earrings mimics the softness and colour variegation in living foliage. The earrings are so intrinsically tactile that I can almost feel myself wearing them: the cool pearls swaying in the breeze while the tufting strokes my neck like a little hug.

JESSICA MACDONALD
Managing Editor


Chantal Jung Deer at Night (2023) Digital collage © THE ARTIST
Deer at Night (2023) 
Gazing at Chantal Jung’s digital collage Deer at Night (2023), I feel as though I’ve stepped into a tranquil yet magical dream. The towering blossoms draw my eyes from a magenta-tinged sky to a spotted deer walking along an urban neighbourhood. Jung, a Nunatsiavut Inuk multimedia artist and writer from Happy-Valley Goose-Bay, NL, captures various transitional elements within this collage: day has shifted to night, blossom petals will fall and fruit will mature in their stead, fungi—a manifestation of life from decay—and stags, who shed and regrow their antlers annually. Each element is a celebration of life and growth, whether daily, seasonally or perennially. Perhaps this collage is less dreamlike after all and more akin to reality threaded with fantastical charm; a suggestion of what can be—as with a flower—if we nurture it.

TIFFANY RADDI
Assistant Editor