Inuit sculptor Abraham Anghik Ruben will be featured at the Inuit Art Society’s 2022 Annual Meeting in Vancouver. He’ll be speaking on September 30.
Ruben was born in Paulatuk, Inuvialuit Settlement Region, Northwest Territories in 1951 and is a major innovative force among Inuit sculptors.
In 1971, Ruben began his formal studies in art under the tutelage of well-respected Inupiaq artist and educator, Ron Senungetuk, who was head of the Native Arts Centre at the University of Alaska Fairbanks at the time. In 1973, Ruben began to exhibit his work.
Abraham has clung fiercely to the stories and traditions he was taught as a child and although he studied art at university, he has often chosen non-traditional materials and tools to tell us the old tales and legends in a new way. (Kipling Gallery: Abraham Anghik Ruben Biography | kiplinggllery.com)
Ruben’s work can be found in private and public collections around the world including the Smithsonian’s National Museum of the American Indian, the National Gallery of Canada, the Canadian Museum of Civilization, the deYoung Museum of San Francisco, the Museum of Cerny Inuit Collection in Bern, Switzerland, and the McMichael Canadian Art Collection.
In 2021, Abraham’s 5-ton limestone carving titled “Time to Play” featuring a family of polar bears was unveiled in the courtyard in front of the new Winnipeg Art Gallery – Qaumajuq. (WAG-Qaumajuq Unveils Sculpture by Abraham Anghik Ruben)
Abraham Anghik Ruben, who currently lives on Salt Spring Island in British Columbia, was appointed an Officer of the Order of Canada in 2016, for his artistic contributions and for his preservation of Inuvialuit culture.
See the full program for the IAS 2022 Annual Meeting.
See more of Ruben’s work on his website.
Read more on the Inuit Art Foundation’s website: Where Do We Go From Here?