unipkaaq: Storytelling Through Clay

We have an exciting new school program focused on narrative storytelling. Your students will learn about the community of Rankin Inlet, Nunavut in the 1960s and 70s when a cultural revolution was taking place. Long renowned for their stone and bone carvings, the Inuit peoples of Nunavut began working with a unique art form—ceramic low-relief and figurative sculptures. Today, after a century of displacement, pottery has helped revitalize the Inuit culture and way of life, creating a new artistic language based on imagery, symbolism, and narration. Students will explore the Gardiner’s collection of Rankin Inlet Inuit ceramics, and learn to tell their own stories with clay.

Cannupa Hanksa Luger: Every One & Kali Spitzer: Sister

Until January 12, 2020, high school students (Grades 9 – 12) taking part in our Unipkaaq program will have the opportunity to engage with Cannupa Hanska Luger: Every One & Kalie Spitzer: Sister, an installation commemorating the murdered and missing Indigenous women, girls, queer, and trans community members (available for younger students upon request). Students will be asked to consider the social injustice of these often nameless, faceless, and untold stories.

Upon request, high school groups registering for the full day program can choose between two studio options at the time of booking: low-relief storytelling or creating a collective piece alongside our potters.

• Links: Indigenous Studies, The Arts, Social Studies, Canadian History, English, Science and Technology
• Studio Project: Low-relief storytelling