Award Profile:
David Ruben Piqtoukun
David Ruben Piqtoukun
David Ruben Piqtoukun was born on the land in Paulatuk, N.W.T., in 1950. A stone carver since 1972, Piqtoukun met Dr. Allen Gonor in 1974, who inspired him to reference traditional Inuit stories, oral traditions and mythology in his sculptural work. Piqtoukun has been collecting stories since he was a child, and uses his materials to reflect and explore his subject matter. In his hands, stories transform stone, antler, bone, feathers and metal into sculptures. Piqtoukun’s sculptures capture movement and moments of narrative tension by using abstracted forms and hand-tooled marks. Currently living in Plainfield, Ont., Piqtoukun received a 2022 Governor General’s Award in Visual and Media Arts.
“Storytelling in our culture is ... and in different places around the world, passed down from generations, interpreted and reinterpreted. The artist’s job is to embellish it.” — David Ruben Piqtoukun
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WHAT
ROLE
Writer
WHEN
Spring/Summer 2022