Cliff Saunders

Cliff Saunders is an Inuk artist whose practice focuses on freehand woodburning. Born in Happy Valley-Goose Bay, Nunatsiavut, NL, Saunders currently lives in Toronto, ON.

Saunders started woodburning in 2024 after he was laid off from his job. “I was bored and wanted something to do, so I took some paper and made a sketch, and put it on wood and went from there,” he says. This was his first foray into creating art, and he is completely self-taught in the medium. He works primarily with basswood, because it’s soft and easy to work with, and he is inspired by landscapes and wildlife. 

Many of Saunders’ works consist of images of animals including wolves, bears, and muskrats. He also depicts hunting scenes with humans and animals. Bear in Pine Forest (2025) features the head of a grizzly bear, mid-roar, with a small scene of a bear in a forest in the middle. The delicate etching gives the appearance of fur, bringing texture and life to the bear. Saunders regularly brings his work to various events and powwows around the Greater Toronto Area, where he connects with other artists and people interested in his work. “You go to different places and meet different people…just make a little connection. You never know what’s going to happen,” he says. 

In the future, Saunders hopes to keep creating art and to sell more of it in Toronto.