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Take a Virtual Voyage to Nunavut!
by Xuefeng Shi
Hello! Since June is the National Indigenous History Month, I have decided to write a little bit about Nunavut, a Canadian Territory that has been the home to the Inuit for over 4,000 years. Sure, this is a part of Canada, and it’s a little closer to home than some of the other places I’ve featured, but there is still plenty that I didn’t know about the region. Chances are, you didn’t know about it either! With all that being said, I hope you enjoy reading this article, as I really enjoyed doing research on this topic!
First, I’d like to introduce you to Auyuittuq National Park, Inuktitut for “Land that Never Melts,” which is a park filled to the brim with rivers and mountains. Perhaps you’d like to go hiking or skiing there, since the mountains in this park are known to be notoriously difficult. One place I would especially recommend is an Inuit natural corridor slotted between icy mountains known as the Akshayuk Pass, or to locals as the Pang Pass. It runs right in the middle of the park and spans around 95 kilometers. Another interesting aspect of this park is the wildlife there, such as the ravens, Arctic foxes, and geese. The waterways even have narwhals and ringed seals!
Nunavut is also a great place for viewing the Aurora Borealis - known in Inuktitut as aqsarniit - since it lacks the pollution that’s so prevalent in our busier cities. If you were to go, many have said that Spring and Autumn would be the best times for this activity because the lights are more visible in cold temperatures, but these seasons aren’t yet unbearably cold. However, even if it was, it would be worth it to see the beautiful, magical, and vivid green waves paint the sky with light. Past viewers have said that it moves as though it were alive - like a ghost, or a spirit. This leads into the many interesting Inuit legends surrounding this phenomenon. For example, there are legends that speculate towards where the lights come from. Certain people think that the northern lights are actually the spirits of their ancestors, playing soccer in the sky with a walrus skull. Others were told as children that they are spirits that will take them away - if they are able to see them at night, while they are supposed to be inside of their homes. Then, certain legends suggest ways to control the northern lights. They believe that by whistling or singing, you can get the northern lights to brighten, and by rubbing your fingernails together, you can get them to leave.
Next up on the itinerary is to go do some bird watching! After all, who doesn’t enjoy watching a bird or two in their natural habitat? They always seem so calm, so serene, as if they were on top of the world. Fun fact - the word, ‘bird’, in Inuktitut, is ‘tingmiaq’, which also means airplane. Now, if you are planning on going bird watching in Nunavut, the best time to go is between the months of May and August. Perhaps you’re thinking, why go to Nunavut when there are plenty of birds where you live, anyway? Going to Nunavut is actually ideal because there are over a hundred types of birds to see, as well as Inuit legends surrounding the birds. To give just a few examples, here are some of the bird species you could see: plovers, sandpipers, loons, snowy owls, cranes, geese, and pipits.
Now, if you’d like to see a more lively side of Nunavut, Iqaluit - the Capital of Nunavut, found on Baffin Island - would be a great place for you. Here, you can do just about anything! You can go hunting, fishing, and foraging. You can check out one of the three territorial parks here! Since it’s a big Inuit culture center, you can take a gander through the art and attend a few festivals. Finally, there is a very well-known road called the Road To Nowhere. You can snap a few photos in front of the road sign for your social media, but afterwards, there’s quite a lot to see! By hiking, driving, or skiing down this road, you’ll pass lakes, hills, and all sorts of wonderful landscape before stopping in the middle of nowhere. Fun, right? Of course, Iqaluit also contains the only museum in the Territory.
This museum is known as Nunatta Sunakkutaangit Museum, and it’s a not-for-profit that used to be a Hudson’s Bay storage building. The main attractions of the museum are a fantastic way of learning more about Inuit history, culture, and the way they used to live, since there are both archaeological and social history exhibits. First, you should see the variety of Inuit artifacts - including traditional clothing, tools, toys, weapons, and a sealskin canoe. Next, I invite you to visit the gift shop, which sells carvings, jewelry, ulus - Inuit women’s knives - and art from current artists. If you have a little extra time, you may want to view the display of photos of the animals from Nunavut. After all, there is an incredible variety of wildlife there! Then, if you’re really lucky, you may just arrive in Nunavut at a time where events to showcase contemporary artists are being held. I know I sure would love to see one of these! Of course, the museum is struggling to stay open during COVID-19, so I implore you to visit their Instagram account, where they have begun to post photos of their artifacts and exhibits.
After learning about the art in the museum, you may like to hear about some more art made by Inuit people in Nunavut. If that’s the case, check out West Baffin Co-Operative Limited. It’s a co-operative in Kinngait - previously known as Cape Dorset - which has existed for 60 years. Many consider it to be the place to view Inuit art. To give you an idea of their accomplishments, the Dorset Fine Arts showroom in Toronto - the showroom hosting much of the artwork from this co-operative - sells their art to be shown in galleries around the world. Every year, they also release an Annual Graphics Collection featuring artists who sculpt or draw. It’s interesting that while approximately 1500 people live here, the community is actually made up of a majority of artists. In case your interest has been piqued, I would now like to inform you that they sell the prints at a print shop known as Dorset Fine Arts, as well as at a retail shop.
Image at left: Muskox, created by Kellipalik Etidolie featured at this Co-op.
Furthermore, Rockin' Walrus Arts Festival is a lively Igloolik festival that takes place in Iqaluit, around June. I would highly recommend visiting to see the music, performances, acrobatics, and theatre, since it’s a powerful show of Inuit culture and activities that celebrate Inuit traditions. One notable performance that occurs every once in a while is the one delivered by the well-known Arctic circus in Igloolik, called ArtCirq. Occasionally, there are also workshops about music, art, and theatre that you can attend to learn more about the subject. Since many of us are unable to fly over to Nunavut right now, I encourage you to listen to some of the performances here.
Additionally, Uqqurmiut Centre For Arts and Crafts is an Inuit art facility that serves a community called Pangnirtung. An interesting fact is that it’s located on the leeside of a mountain, and the word, ‘Uqqurmiut’, is Inuktitut for ‘the people of the leeside’. The centre they built resembles the traditionally circular Inuit tents and igloos, and it includes a print shop, a tapestry studio, and a craft gallery. As for their purpose, it is to present Inuit art to the rest of Canada. In doing this, they create jobs for artists, provide opportunities for artists to sell their work, preserve the work for the future (in fact, they’ve archived over 8,000 original art pieces), and show tourists the beauty of Inuit culture. I recommend viewing the 2011 collection here, since the pieces are truly beautiful. My personal favourite is a piece called Tinirnirmiutait (From the Shore), created by Eena Angmarlik. The color scheme, the pattern, and the overall design are simply incredible. If you’re interested in buying some of their art, they do have a website where you can order some of these arts and crafts.
Finally, there is Toonik Tyme Festival, founded by Bryan Pearson - a week-long festival held in Iqaluit during April. It celebrates the arrival of spring, preserves Inuit culture, shares it with tourists, and passes it onto future generations. During the festival, you can participate in Inuit games, competitions, and activities - such as igloo building, ice sculpting, Bannock baking, as well as watching performances. A type of performance that is unique to Nunavut is throat singing. During this activity, they use their throat, belly, and diaphragm to create music. Every year, an Honorary Toonik award is also given to an avid volunteer and active community member at the festival. Of course, we must also acknowledge the origin of the name. It was based on ‘Toonik’, the individual form of the Tuniit people. These people were in Nunavut even before today’s Inuit people 1000 years ago. Unfortunately, they disappeared around 600 years ago, but they are commemorated every year through this festival.
That is all I have to say about Nunavut! Of course, there are plenty of beautiful places in the Territory that I didn’t have time to mention, but here is a great resource for doing some further research if you would like to!
I also have a final note. Since this is the tenth issue of the Virtual Voice - and the last - I will no longer be popping in to talk to you about the region I had been wishing to travel to during that month. I’d like to thank Meadow A. for starting this column - it was such a great idea, and I’ve had so much fun writing it! I can only hope that I’ve lived up to her expectations for the column. I would also like to thank anyone who has read this far - I hope you have a great summer, and if you’re coming back to OCV next year, I hope to see you then!
A Note from Xuefeng, Virtual Voyages Columnist:
Whether you want to go to Bali or Tokyo or Brazil, almost everyone can relate to the urge to travel to the many magnificent countries of the world. And though we are stuck inside our own houses, it does not mean that we can't visit our dream destinations in our imaginations.
I hope you have enjoyed coming on these virtual voyages.
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