Etidloie, Isaci

Sculptor Isaci Etidloie picked up his first set of hand tools at seven years old, initially carving figures engaged in the daily practices of nomadic Inuit life. Based in Kinngait (Cape Dorset), NU, Etidloie explored themes of song, such as drum dancing, supernatural stories and elaborate spirit transformations, drawing upon the influence of his father’s, Etulu Etidloie, profession as a folk singer and immortalized in his piece from 2002 Portrait of My Father, which features a relief cut framed likeness. Etidlioe’s work is characterized by its playfulness and ingenuity, depicting both traditional activities such as hunting, fishing and drum dancing, as well as activities unusual in Inuit art, such as in his work Gymnast (2018) which seems almost to defy gravity in the way it is expertly balanced. Etidloie’s work was included in the National Gallery of Canada’s exhibition Inuit Sculpture Now (2007) alongside 15 of his peers from across Inuit Nunangat and can be found today in several major public collections including the Canada Council Art Bank, the Art Gallery of Ontario and the Winnipeg Art Gallery.