Sold at Auction: Johnny Aculiak

JOHNNY ACULIAK (ALAKARIALOOK; JOHNIAHL; AQULIAK; JOANNIE; JOANIE; JUANIE)
Born: May 18, 1951 Male E9-1958
Resides: Umiujaq; also lived in Inukjuak, Povungnituk
Sculpture, Prints, Printmaking, Jewellery
Johnny Aculiak was born in Inukjuak and moved to Umiujaq in the late
1980s. Though he is best known for his carvings Johnny has also tried drawing
and jewellery making. Johnny learned to carve in 1968 and has since worked
with materials such as stone, antler, ivory and whalebone. Johnny, however,
prefers working with soapstone and his favourite subject is the Inuit; he
feels it is important others learn about his people and their culture.
Johnny is married to crafts artist Lily Aculiak.

EXHIBITIONS:
1973 Arctic Quebec Print Collection
(annual collection)
(illustrated catalogue)
1973, 1974 Arctic Quebec Print Collection II
(annual collection)
(illustrated catalogue)
December 1977 - February 1978
Povungnituk
Winnipeg Art Gallery
Winnipeg, Manitoba
(illustrated catalogue)
September 1980 - February 1981
Things Made by Inuit
La Federation des Cooperatives du
Nouveau-Quebec
Montreal, Quebec
(tour)
(illustrated catalogue)
December 1987 - January 1988
The Art of the Eskimo
Newman Galleries
Bryn Mawr, Pennsylvania, U.S.A.
1988 - 1990 Stories in Stone: Soapstone Sculptures From
Northern Quebec and Kenya
La Federation des Cooperatives du
Nouveau-Quebec
Montreal, Quebec
(tour)
(illustrated catalogue)

March 1988 Arctic Forms - Inuit Sculpture
Arctic Inuit Art Gallery
Richmond, Virginia, U.S.A.
November 1993 - March 1994
The Inuit Imagination
Winnipeg Art Gallery
Winnipeg, Manitoba
November - December 1995 Miniaturen
Inuit Galerie
Mannheim, Germany
(brochure)
January - February 1996 Not Just a Dancing Step...
Galerie D'Art Vincent
Ottawa, Ontario
(illustrated catalogue)
March - April 1996 Major/Minor
Marion Scott Gallery
Vancouver, British Columbia
COLLECTIONS:
Canadian Museum of Civilization, Hull, Quebec
National Gallery of Canada, Ottawa, Ontario
Winnipeg Art Gallery, Winnipeg, Manitoba
HONOURS, ACHIEVEMENTS and EVENTS:
1987 Visited Russia in September when the exhibition 'Things Made by Inuit' was
presented in Nobosibirsk, Siberia.
SELECTED REFERENCES:
Eisemon, Thomas Owen
STORIES IN STONE = LA PIERRE RACONTE: Soapstone Sculptures from
Northern Quebec and Kenya = Sculptures de steatite du
Nouveau-Quebec et du Kenya. Ottawa: La Federation des
Cooperatives du Nouveau-Quebec and The Canadian Museum of
Civilization, 1988.

Galerie d'art Vincent
NOT JUST A DANCING STEP = PLUS QU'UN PAS DE DANSE: An Inuit Art
Exhibition organized by Galerie d'art Vincent, Chateau Laurier,
Ottawa, Canada = Une exposition d'art Inuit... Ottawa: Galerie
d'art Vincent [1996].
Noel, Michel
NUNAVIMIUT: ART INUIT = INUIT ART. Pointe-Claire, Quebec:
Roussan en collaboration avec l'Institut cultural AVATAQ, 1992
(Collection LE TAMBOUR).
Seidelman, Harold and James Turner
THE INUIT IMAGINATION: Arctic Myth and Sculpture.
Vancouver/Toronto: Douglas & McIntyre, 1993.
Winnipeg Art Gallery
POVUNGNITUK. Winnipeg: The Winnipeg Art Gallery, 1977.