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| Me at my Montreal studio |
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| Photo by John Sabourin |
My name is Christopher Lawson Alec Tuckatuck-MacDonald.
I am an Inuit artist from Kuujjuaraapik, Nunavik-Quebec, Canada. All of my sculptures are hand sculpted from materials such
as soapstone and many other types of stone, caribou antler, muskox horn, walrus tusks and more. They depict our animals, legends,
myths, stories, and my people's unique way of life. My inspiration comes from the land and wanting to preserve
our traditions. My art work is a means of cultural affirmation,
it allows me to express what we need to keep and remember, what we need to preserve and practice, what is important to our
culture and what people need to see. I was born in Fort George,
Quebec, as it was the closest hospital to Kuujjuaraapik, on March 14, 1976. It is now called Chisasibi as Fort George
no longer exists. It was flooded by the James Bay dam projects. I started sculpting when I was seven years
old. I am named after my uncle, Alec, whom I call ‘saunik’
and he the same for me. This is how we identify and call each other and it is our namesake. ‘Tuckatuck’, our last
name, has never been determined what it means but we believe that it came from a small bird called the “tukatukiaq,"
or Arctic Tern in English.
| My grandfather, SarWillie Amittuk |
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I started watching my grandfather, SarWillie Amittuk, creating beautiful Inuit Art when
I was very young. I would sit with him as he carved, he would give me some tools and soapstone to play with, and I would
imitate him. He would ask me what I see in the soapstone and tell me to look for an animal in the stone. He would encourage
me to envision animals, as I would see them when I went on the land, ice, water, in their natural setting and movement in
the stone. This is very much what Inuit Art is and how Inuit Art comes to life. When I was seven he started teaching me how
to use his tools for working on soapstone. Sadly, he died shortly after beginning to show me how to carve so my uncle, Alec, started
to teach me. I made my first soapstone art sculpture when I was seven. It was of a seal lying down on its side. I still have
it. I continued to watch and observe my uncle carving and I would often work beside him making my own carvings.
| Davidee Tuckatuck, SarWillie Amittuk on the left |
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I remember there were times, before my grandfather
died, that he would be gone. I remember asking my mom where he was and she would explain that he was carving sikkuq (ice)
for people far away with my great aunt and uncle, Lucy and Noah Meeko. They were often invited to places like Quebec City,
Japan, and places in Europe to carve ice sculptures during festivals. At that time, I did not understand how important it
was but I remember it was a proud event for our family. My grandfather, Sarowilly, his brother Davidialuk Ammittu
(one of the most well-known Inuit Artists from Nunavik) and my great aunt and uncle, Lucy and Noah Meeko, were all well
established Inuit Artists. My mother, Louisa Tuckatuck, was a unique and creative artist and is well known through out
the north along with my saunik and aippaq (uncle & aunt) Alec and Maggie Tuckatuck.
| Family picnic at second point in Kuujjuaraapik |
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| Photo by Isabelle Garneau |
I continued carving as a child until our family moved to Chatham, New Brunswick, in support
of my grandmother after my grandfather passed away. I did not have the tools or soapstone like I did with my uncle and family
in Kuujjuaraapik so I stopped carving. I started getting involved in other activities such as hockey and baseball in
which I also excelled. At one point CBC North did a documentary on me because of my successes in hockey. I also played Junior
Hockey at a Tier 2 level in Saskatchewan for an all-native hockey team in Saskatchewan called the Lebret Eagles. I graduated
high school in Chatham and went on to graduate university with a Bachelor of Physical Education from the University of New
Brunswick. With the longing feeling to return back ‘home’ in Nunavik, I was finally able to return to the north
after completing my degree. In 2000 I moved to Kuujjuaq, Nunavik-Quebec which is the largest Inuit community of Nunavik,
having a population of about 2200. It was there, in Kuujjuaq, that I was able to get back to my roots. I could pass
on what I have learned traditionally about our own culture to other Inuit youth. It was there that I began carving soapstone
again, passing on my knowledge of what it takes to create traditional Inuit art, as well as contemporary Inuit Art.
| Winter Festival in Quebec City |
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| My mom and I (taken in Kuujjuaq, Nunavik-Quebec) |
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| Photo by Isabelle Garneau |
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