Celebrating Inuit Art 1948-1970.

Celebrating Inuit Art 1948-1970. Maria von Finckenstein. Denver: Firefly Books Ltd. (800-803-8488), 2000. Illus., hardcover, 192 pp., $40.00.

This book provides an extraordinary visual tribute to a very distinctive sculptural form. More than 100 color photographs document a range of figurative forms carved from greystone. The single and group portrayals of village life, hunters, fishermen, bears, walrus, birds, help us to know more about another way of life. The often archetypal figures are also strong examples of naive, honest artful expression. We note the sculpture of a dog that reminds us of Brancusi; a mother and child evocative of Kollwitz. Several provocative essays precede the photographs. The years 1948-1970 encompass the two decades during which most Inuit in the Canadian Arctic gave up their nomadic existence and settled into communities around Hudson Bay. The opportunity to present--and sell--their sculpture to an international audience aided economically in this transition. The expressive power within these simple forms can lend credence to artroom possibilities as students carve forms from plaster, wood, clay, soap, and other basic materials. Recommended as a resource that informs both aesthetically and culturally.