The Inuit Art Foundation is the keeper of a rich and deep archive of Inuit creative production. For over thirty years, the IAF has collected slides, photographs, interviews and artist files that record many unique aspects of modern Inuit art history.
In 2019, the IAF received grants from the National Heritage Digitization Strategy and Library and Archives Canada’s Documentary Heritage Communities Program to digitize over 22,000 photographic records, comprised of 35mm slides, negatives, transparencies and prints that were formerly in the collection of the Department of Indian Affairs and Northern Development (DIAND); now Crown-Indigenous Relations and Northern Affairs Canada (CIRNAC).
The photographic records, which depict a wide variety of artwork, artist portraits and community photographs, are presented below in a series of Finding Aids organized by community. The Inuit Art Foundation is not the owner of the objects depicted in the photographic material, and the collections where the works are currently held remains a rich area of future study.
The Finding Aids are intended to provide public access and include records that are partially processed. The information included herein is based off of original documentation from DIAND and though efforts have been made to ensure its accuracy, we acknowledge that some information may be incomplete. Please contact the Inuit Art Foundation to verify the information. Records from the Inuit Art Foundation’s archival holdings may not be published, exhibited or broadcast without the written permission of, and proper credit to, the Inuit Art Foundation.