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Hebron Series #2

By drawing attention to the faces of two Hebron Inuit women, Heather Igloliorte shows that they are worthy of being seen. Igloliorte’s canvas is from a series of twelve that the artist produced while she was an art student at the Nova Scotia College of Art and Design. Each image in the series was painted in full colour. She then painted the image with approximately 25 thin layers of wash (thin white paint). With each layer, the details of the initial image became increasingly clouded, moving toward disappearance. The figures became placeless, with no observable background for the viewer to glean information about the subjects.

Newfoundland and Labrador is a province where long-hidden histories are surfacing, brought to light through the efforts of many individuals. This particular image is a painted translation of a photograph that was included in a publication by anthropologist Carol Brice-Bennett, whose work laid the foundation for land-claim and self-governance negotiations between the Inuit and the provincial and federal governments. The two women in the original photograph were former residents of Hebron. Established in 1831 as a Moravian mission, Hebron was once the northernmost settlement in Labrador (located 200 km north of Nain — the current northernmost community). The Inuit who lived at Hebron enjoyed a strong traditional life in which residents spoke the Inuit language and hunted. In 1955, however, a member of the International Grenfell Association wrote a letter to the government of Canada expressing concern about Hebron’s living conditions. In 1959, after consultation with Moravian leaders — but not with community members — the government decided to close the mission and resettle Inuit to larger communities. The loss was felt deeply, as former resident Sophie Keelan (née Jararuse) has described in 2017: “It was a difficult experience, an overwhelming experience. […] We left our identity as Inuit, as families, as close friends. We had to survive and get adapted again to the new environment, to the new land. We had to learn again the surroundings of hunting areas.”

Igloliorte’s painting represents a distance she feels, and that she now seeks to bridge. Raised in Labrador as the daughter of an Inuit father and former residential student, Igloliorte did not grow up speaking Inuktitut. She is now a highly esteemed professor and curator whose career is dedicated to researching the Inuit and other circumpolar communities, as well as creating an ethical space for others to research. Among her many achievements is the curation of the first major exhibition and publication of art by Labrador Inuit. Her work brings to the surface a vibrant and important aspect of this province’s history.

Rather than being viewed as a metaphor for a lost history, Igloliorte’s work can be seen as a form of prompt — it is up to the viewer to look closely and dig deeper, to search for the story beneath the layers. By highlighting these women’s faces and bringing attention to their lived experiences, Igloliorte shows us the importance of actively uncovering what might feel distant.

Hebron Li Series #2

Ka mashnipayhtawt chi kawnatouhtahkawtayk li vizhaezh ouschi deu Hebron Aen Eskimoo lee faem, Heather Igloliorte wawpastahiwayw aykwanima wiyawow mamischimikawshoowak chi wawpamischik. Igloliorte soon awn twel li series ouschi douz aykwawnima ooma li portray ka mashnipayhtawt ouschikawtayw maykwawt wiya aen li art aen zhawn d'ikol itay Nova Scotia Koleej ouschi Li Art akwa Maashinayikatewin. Shakaen li portray didawn ooma li series ki shoupaykahikawtayw didawn mitouni kahkiyuw la kouleur. Ekoushpee shoupaykahikawtayw li portray avek nanduw vaentsaen akawwawt li koum l'or li paencheuree ouschi la paencheur (akawwawt li blawn koum l'or li paencheuree). Avek shakaen li koum l'or li paencheuree, oohin par pchi braen ouschi neekwan li portray ki mitouni wundipishkawtayw, ishpayiwn kaykawt aen namatakoun. Oohin ka mashnipayhtawhk mitouni kitimawkinawkwun, avek namakaykway chi nokwun la vayritee poor wawpaschikaywuk chi nishtoustahkik weehstamakaywin ouschi ka mashnipayhtawhk.

Newfoundland akwa Labrador si en provayns itay kinwaysh-ki kawchikawtayw li tawn'd kayawsh akwa nawkwun, paychikawtayw ishi wawpastamowin shawpou koucheewin ouschi mischayt li moond. Ooma ispray li portray si shoupaykahikawtayw awnturpretee ouschi li portray aykwawnima ki avek didawn aen li leevr ouschi anthropologist Carol Brice-Bennett, soon atoushkaywin ki ashtaw oom kamawchipayihtawhk poor la tayr- riklawmee akwa wiya-ikouhk tipaymishouwin kakayeshkimiwaywin awntor deu Aen Eskimoo akwa provayns akwa aen tayritori li Gouvarnimaw. Ooki deu lee faem didawn ooma la promyaenr li portray ki mawna keeweekichik itay Hebron. Ouschikawtayw didawn 1831 ishi en misyoon'd Moravian, Hebron aykwawina aen koo mawna li nor aen ptsi vilazh didawn Labrador (ashtayw 200 km li not ouschi Nain — aykwawnima maykwawt a lawntour li nor). Aen Eskimoo kaw weekit itay Hebron ki myeuwawtam aen for ka ki ishi pimaatishihk aykwawina ooki keeweekichik peekishkwaywak Aen Eskimoo la lawngaezh meena mawcheeywak. Ishpee 1955, mawka, aen maambr ouschi ooma Tooroon not grawn piyee Grenfell Mamaawinitowin mashinaham la letr ishi Li Gouvarnimaw di Kenadaw chi keepeekishkwatum li troub ouschi Hebron soon weekiwin keekakwawtakistowin. Ishpee 1959, apray kakayeshkimiwaywin avek Moravian neekawnaywak — mawak namoo avek a lawntour li maambr — ooki Li Gouvarnimaw il a disidee chi kipaha en misyoon akwa ishpichayhayw Aen Eskimoo ishi lee groo a alawntour. Ooma wanistawin mitouni moushistawwuk wanihtawin, ka ki mawna weekit Sophie Keelan (née Jararuse) ki weestam la diskripsyoon ishpee 2017: “Ki mitouni ayimun kawkeeshpayik, shishikwut kawkeeshpayik. … Ninakataynawn ninishtawaytakooshiwinawn ishi Aen Eskimoo, li famee, araw aen namee. Ay-ishkouynaenhk niyanawn akwa chi naakayashkamahk neu itaykawweekihk, ishi neu li tayraen. Chikee meena aen kishkayistamahk keehtwawm ooma itay ka mawcheehk tayhkay.”

Igloliorte ka shoupaykahikawtaywin soon tapashinahitawtaywin sipawrasyoon ka mooshtawt, akwa meena chi natonam tout awnsawmbl. Ouhpikow didawn Labrador ishi la feey ouschi Aen Eskimoo opawpaw akwa epen itay kawkiweekihk aen zhawn d'ikol, Igloliorte namoo ouhpikow chi peekishkwayt Inuktitut. Anoush akwa wiya gischeetaymaw aen medikol daw li koleezh akwa kawpayhkischikayt soon atoushkayinw aykwawnima ahkamaymou chi aw-awpootapastam Aen Eskimoo akwa kootaka awhkwatinwa a lawntour, akwa meena chi-oushistow awnoerab la plass poor kootakak chi aw-awpootapastahk. Tukwayow avek mischayt soon kashkistawnin kawpayhkischikaywin ouschi neekawn aenportaan nawkouhtawin akwa didawn aen li leevr dan li art ouschi Labrador Aen Eskimoo. Soon atoushkaywin paytaw ishi disseu aen tout sort di koleur akwa aenportaan la veu ouschi ooma enn provayns li tawn'd kayawsh.

Nawut eka chi wawpamihk ishi aen metaphor poor wanistawin li tawn'd kayawsh, Igloliorte soon atoushkaywin chikee wawpaschikawtayw ishi aen oushistowin—wawpaschikayw wiya onawashoonikaywin chi wawpastahk araw akwa chi kishkayistahk ayiwawk, chi natounamin poor ooma nistwayr awnt sour oohin li koum l'or li paencheuree. Mitouni shinishtoustamoohiwayhk oohin lee faem soon vizhaezh akwa chi paytawhk kawnatouhtahkawtayk ishi soon pimatishiwin kawkeeshpayik, Igloliorte wawpatashiwayw ooma aenportaan ouschi put koovayr chi kishchayhtakwahk kaykwuy ka itayitakwuhk wawhyow.

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Mireille Eagan is the Curator of Contemporary Art at The Rooms in St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador.