Tanya Tagaq Releases new Album
On March 6, award-winning singer-songwriter and author Tanya Tagaq, CM, released her album Saputjiji, meaning “designated protector.” The album features 11 tracks and is a response to rising political tensions, featuring vocals and electronic elements. Earlier this year, Tagaq’s theatre production, Split Tooth: Saputjiji, premiered at the Chan Centre for Performing Arts in Vancouver, BC. The production is a blend of Tagaq’s debut novel, Split Tooth (2018), and this new album.
PISIQ Nominated for 2026 Juno Award
Throat-singing duo PIQSIQ, composed of sisters Tiffany Ayalik and Inuksuk Mackay, was nominated for a Juno Award in the category Global Album of the Year for their album Legends (2025). The album, released in summer 2025, is rooted in Inuit storytelling and was also nominated for two Canadian Folk Music Awards this year. The winners of the Juno Awards will be announced at the gala on Saturday, March 28, in Hamilton, ON.
Beatrice Deer to Release New Album
Award-winning singer-songwriter Beatrice Deer will release her album Inuit Legend on April 3. The album focuses on stories of female power, transformation, and survival. “I hope listeners learn about our legends by enjoying the music, the stories and sharing them,” [1] she says. Deer sings in English, French, and Inuktitut in her work, and has performed worldwide, including at the Venice Biennale and Norway's Førde Traditional and World Music Festival. In 2023, she was named “Woman of the Year” by the Montreal Council of Women and won the Summer Solstice Indigenous Music Award for Inuit Artist of the Year. In 2024, she was awarded the King Charles III Coronation Medal. The album release concert for Inuit Legend will take place on April 24 in Montreal, QC.
Sikuvoq, sikuerpoq / When the ice holds, when it breaks Opens at Remai Modern
The exhibition Sikuvoq, sikuerpoq / When the ice holds, when it breaks opened at Remai Modern in Saskatoon, SK, on March 6. The exhibition features collaborative work by Laakkuluk Williamson Bathory and Jaimie Griffiths and is part of the multi-year project Carried by rivers, held by lands, which aims to bring together works by artists with diverse practices working in the North. There are two works at the centre of the exhibition: White Liar and the Known Shore: Frobisher and the Queen (2021) and Silaup Putunga (2018), which offer “ways of seeing that hold multiple realities at once.” [2] Williamson Bathory and Griffiths’s work is presented alongside other work by Inuit artists from Remai Modern’s collection. The exhibition is on view until July 5.
North of North and Uiksaringitara (Wrong Husband) are Nominated for 2026 Canadian Screen Awards
Arctic comedy series North of North (2025–present), co-created and co-produced by Alethea Arnaquq-Baril and Stacey Aglok MacDonald, has been nominated for 20 Canadian Screen Awards. The nominations include Best Comedy Series; Best Direction, Comedy; Best Writing, Comedy; Best Ensemble Performance, Comedy; and Best Lead Performance, among others. Season one of the series premiered in January 2025 and has gained popularity, reaching the top 10 most popular shows on Netflix. The show follows young Inuk mother Siaja, played by Anna Lambe, who sets out to take control of her life. Season two is currently in production. Uiksaringitara (Wrong Husband) (2025), directed by Zacharias Kunuk, OC, ON, has been nominated for four awards: Best Motion Picture; Achievement in Direction; Performance in a Leading Role, Drama; and Performance in a Supporting Role, Drama. The film is a supernatural historical drama that follows an arranged marriage between sapa, played by Haiden Angutimarik, and Kaujak, played by Theresia Kappianaq. The Canadian Screen Awards will take place May 27–31, 2026, in Toronto, ON.
Bronson Jacque Designs a Coin for the 2026 Canada’s National Park Series
Inuk painter and digital artist Bronson Jacque has designed a coin for the Royal Canadian Mint for the 2026 Canada’s National Parks Series. The coin depicts the Torngat Mountains National Park, featuring bright blue-green northern lights with the mountains, foliage, and caribou. Each coin in the series features two red deck chairs, inviting people to sit and enjoy the scene in each of the national parks. Jacque previously worked with the mint in 2025 to design a holographic coin titled Moon Sky: Raven.
Check Out Some of the Latest Artist Profiles!
The IAQ editorial team has created some new artist profiles. If you’d like to look at some intricate beadwork, check out Emelia Angnatok, from Nain, Nunatsiavut, NL. If you’re interested in toolmaking, textile work, and carving, you might enjoy reading about multidisciplinary artist Nicholas Flowers, from Hopedale, Nunatsiavut, NL.
Notes
1 Beatrice Deer, written correspondence with the IAQ, March 2026.
2 Remai Modern "Sikuvoq, sikuerpoq / When the ice holds, when it breaks," remaimodern.org/whats-on/exhibitions-all/sikuvoq-sikuerpoq-when-the-ice-holds-when-it-breaks/.