Artist Feature: Joe Nasogaluak
Joe Nasogaluak describes himself as a hunter, trapper, provider, carver and painter from Tuktuuyaqtuuq. In addition to being one of the most celebrated Inuvialuit artists of the North, he also co-founded the Saliqmiut Drummers and Dancers. He’s proud of the roles he serves in his community and the way his art captures a specific Northern way of living, inspired by what he experiences.
Joe Nasogaluak in his workshop in Tuktuuyaqtuuq
“I make statement carvings. My work is statement carvings - what’s happening out around you, what you see, what’s happening with our culture.”
For Joe, capturing the living world of life in the Western Arctic - a way of life that still exists for many people - is at the core of his art. Because of this, his inspirations for songs and carvings come from experiences out on the land, the way they have for many generations of artists before him.
“Lots of songs were made while people were travelling in a sled, on a hunting trip or in the summer. Lots of them were made right when they were enjoying the weather in the summer - being alone in the land. Lots of them came to them. You would sit down in the moment, you get the feeling of writing a song or a drum dance.”
He believes these are the ways of living that need to be taught and shown, so younger generations can learn the ways things were done in the past and understand the reason for them. Being out on the land is part of that traditional process.
“I wrote a few drum dance songs. It just comes to you - you don’t ask for it, you don’t wait for it, you don’t say ‘I’m going to go make a drum dance song’. Nothing will come to you, it's just in these moments - the peaceful moments you get - then you write it.”
Joe Nasogaluak performing at Kitti Hall in Tuktuuyaqtuuq with his drum dancing group, the Saliqmiut Drummers and Dancers
Being one of the founding members of the project, for Joe, Saliqmiut: Tuktuuyaqtuuq Centre for Arts and Culture is going to be a place for learning - learning history, learning culture and learning pride. He knows many people are interested in continuing the art of drum dancing and other traditional practices, but he feels many young people are shy or just don’t know how to live a Northern way of life.
Without that traditional knowledge, Joe thinks it’s hard for young Inuvaluit to have pride in who they are and where they are from.
“Traditional knowledge - where we are - is building a base so you can bring your family up in a certain culture. We can show them what we have here - what’s around us. The important thing is to have a place to show how it started. The science, the reason behind all this.”
Saliqmiut: Tuktuuyaqtuuq Centre for Arts and Culture is going to be a place where the traditional ways and the new ways can come together. Joe can see changes in the tools and materials he uses - using wood from a store to make drums or stone for carving rather than whalebone. There are ways the modern world has made things different, but traditional knowledge is still at the core of it all.
“With this heritage centre, we can show our people. Show who we are - where we come from. So in the end, we can all be proud of our people. Proud of who we are, and where we are going.”
It’s important to Joe that Saliqmiut: Tuktuuyaqtuuq Centre for Arts and Culture provides a place for young people to see their own people and their own way of life presented in a way that says that traditional ways and Northern ways are just as important as modern ways.
“This place will show them that they can have their own people as heroes. I’ve never seen a kid say I want to be like this person from our area. We need to show the kids we have heroes here. I think it’s one thing we need to do as people - show the kids we are heroes of this North.”
Joe believes building that sense of pride in the community is part of his responsibility and the responsibility of young people who want to learn.
“By having this culture, this traditional way, they’ll realize that they have something in them. Some light from my people. With this heritage centre, we can show our people. Show who we are - where we come from. So in the end, we can all be proud of our people. Proud of who we are, and where we are going.”