Dreaming Forward

A testament to the impacts of colonization and a record of adaptation and resourcefulness, Worlds on Paper presents never-before-published drawings from artists in Kinngait (Cape Dorset) made between 1957 and 1990. These works lie outside of the artistic norms typically associated with Inuit art of the era, revealing a community in a time of transformation.

Inuit works on paper have long been renowned for scenes of wildlife, hunting and camping, as well as depictions of animistic spirituality and transformation. Historically, drawings were selected from the Kinngait Drawing Archive to be made into prints at the discretion of tastemakers from the South. The recently digitized 90,000-item drawings archive (1957–1990) from the celebrated printmaking studio in Kinngait is an unparalleled cultural and social document. Housing scores of fascinating and revealing drawings of community, family, contact with newcomers, and life on the land, as well as seldom seen portraits and examples of Inuit Futurism, Worlds on Paper presents a vivid record of lived experience and personal stories long buried.

This groundbreaking publication and exhibition, led by Inuit curator Emily Laurent Henderson and staged by the McMichael Canadian Art Collection, animates the legacy of Kinngait Studio and its role in generating, nurturing, and promoting artists who continue to challenge expectations and provoke fresh understandings. With essays by Susan Aglukark, Kyle Aleekuk, Mark Bennett, Napatsi Folger, Jamesie Fournier, Janice Grey, Jonas Laurent Henderson, Jessica Kotierk, Nicole Luke, Malayah Maloney, Jocelyn Piirainen, Krista Ulujuk Zawadski, and others, Worlds on Paper explores cultural transformation through the lens of art.