Tuhaalruuqtut Ancestral Sounds

Against a background of photographs from the farthest north, the Inuit elders of Baker Lake sing and tell of great exploits and suffering. Their story is one of endurance, patience, courage, frailty, joy and a common bond with all the people of this vast, bountiful, beautiful and sometimes frigid land.

The exhibit’s opening photograph of Marion

Tulluq’s 1978 wall hanging, People, Shamans and Spirits (property of the National Gallery of Canada) sets the scene. Photographs from the National Archives of Canada taken by government geologist Major L.T. Burwash on his trek along the Thelon River through Baker Lake with J.W. and J.B. Tyrell set the stage for the Inuit story. Images from the Danish Museum of the Fifth Thule Expedition to Baker Lake in 1922 follow. Pages from Robert McGhee’s book, Ancient People of the Arctic and several photographs of the Inuit Heritage Centre and local residents add to the drama. A photograph of Victoria Mamnguqsualuk Kajurjuk’s 1970 print of the Keeveok’s Family (property of the Sanavik Co-op of Baker Lake, Nunavut) is also included.

While the songs, legends and oral historical accounts of local Inuit of Baker Lake are, at times, told in the traditional voice of the Inuit of yesteryears, this Community Memories Exhibit is an opportunity for those who speak English or Inuktitut who use today’s vernacular to understand the struggle and the achievements of traditional Inuit life.