Joosii (Josie) Pisuktie (b.1901) Inuit Serpentine Stone Kudlik | Mid-20th Century, Signed ᔪᓯ E7-404

Details

Description

Hand-carved serpentine stone kudlik by Inuk sculptor Joosii (Josie) Pisuktie (born 1901), associated with Iqaluit, formerly Frobisher Bay, on Baffin … Read more Hand-carved serpentine stone kudlik by Inuk sculptor Joosii (Josie) Pisuktie (born 1901), associated with Iqaluit, formerly Frobisher Bay, on Baffin Island, Nunavut.

Carved from mottled olive-green and dark serpentine, the kudlik has a shallow, elongated basin with rounded ends and a flat base. It measures 10½″ wide × 3½″ deep × 2½″ high. The underside is incised with the artist’s Inuktitut syllabic signature, ᔪᓯ, and his identifying disc number, E7-404. These markings connect the piece to Pisuktie’s documented body of work.

The kudlik, also spelled qulliq, is the traditional Inuit stone oil lamp. Historically fueled with animal oil and fitted with a wick of plant material along its edge, it supplied light and warmth and supported cooking and drying clothing. It occupied a central place in domestic life and remains an important expression of Inuit cultural continuity.

This example brings that familiar household form into Pisuktie’s carving practice. Its broad basin and restrained contours emphasize the stone itself, while the worn surface records its history of handling. Its precise date and history of use are undocumented.

**Details**

- Artist: Joosii (Josie) Pisuktie — ᔪᓯ
- Born: 1901
- Community: Iqaluit, formerly Frobisher Bay, Baffin Island, Nunavut, Canada
- Date: Undated; mid-20th century attribution
- Material: Hand-carved serpentine stone
- Color: Mottled olive green, charcoal, and lighter natural mineral markings
- Dimensions: 10½″ W × 3½″ D × 2½″ H
- Signature: Incised Inuktitut syllabics and disc number E7-404 on the underside

**Condition**

Good overall condition, with surface wear, scratches, and small edge nicks consistent with age and handling. The stone retains its natural color variation and visible carved surface. Please review the photographs for condition details.

**About the Artist**

Joosii Pisuktie, generally catalogued as Josie Pisuktie, was an Inuk sculptor associated with Iqaluit on southern Baffin Island. Born in 1901, he worked in carved stone, depicting birds, seals, human figures, kayaking scenes, and traditional stone lamps.

His activity is documented by *Man and Kayak*, dated 1961, in the collection of the Scott Polar Research Institute at the University of Cambridge. The Inuit Art Foundation’s photographic archives record green and grey-green stone bird carvings from 1965 and 1966, and the National Gallery of Canada lists a *Bird* dating to approximately 1968.

Pisuktie participated in 'Canadian Sculptors of the Arctic' at the National Gallery of Canada in 1963. His work was also included in the 2011 exhibition 'Raw Materials: Inuit Sculpture from the Sylvia A. Morley Collection' at the institution now known as Toronto Metropolitan University.

Although detailed accounts of his personal life remain limited, his surviving carvings, exhibition history, and institutional holdings establish his place within twentieth-century Inuit sculpture.

Public and Institutional Collections

- National Gallery of Canada, Ottawa, Ontario
- Scott Polar Research Institute, University of Cambridge, England
- McMaster Museum of Art, Hamilton, Ontario
- McCord Stewart Museum, Montréal, Québec
- Toronto Metropolitan University, Archives & Special Collections, Toronto, Ontario
- Red Deer and District Museum and Archives, Alberta
- National Museum of the American Indian, Smithsonian Institution — holds a figure catalogued as attributed to Pisuktie
- Government of Nunavut Fine Art Collection — reported in published biographical references

The Inuit Art Foundation also preserves archival photographs documenting his carvings. See less