New years always bring new events, and it looks like the coming year is chock-full of Inuit and circumpolar Indigenous art happenings across the world. From exhibitions to new books, festivals, anniversaries and annual traditions, we’re bringing together 25 of the events we’re most excited about in 2025.
Read on to learn about these 5, and keep an eye out for the others in the series to catch all 25!
Couzyn van Heuvelen Nitsiit (installation view) (2023) Aluminum, resin, steel, stainless steel, pigment, paint and aircraft cable, Dimensions variable COURTESY BONAVISTA BIENNALE PHOTO BRIAN RICKS © THE ARTIST
Bonavista Biennale Bonavista Peninsula, NL
August 16–September 14, 2025
The Bonavista Biennale will be back for its fifth iteration this August. A free, unique contemporary art experience that takes place on the Bonavista Peninsula, it’s a unique platform for community engagement with art and artists. The 2025 biennale will be curated by Dr. Heather Igloliorte, Board President of the Inuit Art Foundation and the Canada Excellence Research Chair in Decolonial and Transformational Indigenous Art Practices at the University of Victoria. While the artists included are yet to be announced, the biennale typically features both emerging and established artists, and in the past has included work by Inuit artists Billy Gauthier, Glenn Gear, Shirley Moorhouse, Couzyn van Heuvelen and Jessica Winters, among others. We can’t wait to see which Inuit artists are in the 2025 lineup!
Kenojuak Ashevak Storytelling of Ravens (2005) Printmaker Pitseolak Niviaqsi Lithograph REPRODUCED WITH PERMISSION DORSET FINE ARTS COURTESY FIRST ARTS © THE ARTIST
Auction Season Fall 2025
Among a host of new exhibitions opening and programming updates for the new year, autumn in the art world boasts a series of serious auctions the only amp up the fever pitch of the season, with auctions from the likes of First Arts and Waddington’s that zero in on gems of Inuit art. Past results in the fall auction season have set records for artists like Judas Ullulaq, Kiugak Ashoona, Jessie Oonark, OC, RCA, John Pangnark and Marion Tuu’luq, not to mention Kenojuak Ashevak, CC, ON, RCA, whose Enchanted Owl (1960) continues to set and surpass records for the highest prices ever paid for a print by a Canadian artist at auction. While these sales test the strength of the secondary market for Inuit art, what really makes them special is the chance to encounter marvelous pieces that have been hidden away in private collections for years and are now re-entering the world for a brief period. Even if you’re not in the market to buy, looking at the catalogues of these auctions yields some truly special artworks you won’t be able to encounter anywhere else.
Billy Gauthier Where Did They Go? (n.d.) Ivory, baleen, serpentine and sinew © THE ARTIST
20th Anniversary: Labrador Inuit Land Claims Agreement Nunatsiavut, NL
December 1, 2025
2025 marks an important anniversary: 20 years since the Labrador Inuit Land Claims Agreement came into effect. The agreement between the Labrador Inuit Association, the government of Newfoundland and Labrador and the government of Canada established the region of Nunatsiavut as it’s known today. Art and politics in Nunatsiavut have long been interconnected, so while programming has not yet been confirmed, keep an eye out next year for events celebrating this important anniversary!
North of North CBC Gem and CBC TV
January 7, 2025
Kick off the new year by watching the first two episodes of the highly anticipated arctic comedy series North of North, produced and written by Alethea Arnaquq-Baril and Stacey Aglok MacDonald! Filmed in Iqaluit, NU, the series stars Inuk actor Anna Lambe, who plays Siaja, a young single mother who dreams of reinventing herself in her small community. Arnaquq-Baril and Aglok MacDonald prioritized working with local Inuit artists and designers to source artwork, garments and artifacts to use onscreen. “We want [people] to feel seen, excited, have a good laugh and to feel pleasure in seeing our communities enjoy themselves and tell joyful stories,” Arnaquq-Baril told CBC earlier this year. The series will premiere in Canada on January 7, 2025, on CBC Gem, CBC TV and APTN, and will launch globally on Netflix in the spring.
Still from Ame Papatsie’s Qalupalik (2024) COURTESY NATIONAL FILM BOARD
Unikkaaqtuarniq: Snowscreen Film Festival Lansdowne Park
Ottawa, ON
February 6–9, 2025
The Asinabka Festival will present the ninth annual Unikkaaqtuarniq snowscreen film festival from February 7 to 9 in Ottawa, ON this year. The snowscreen event is a unique film-going experience that features screenings of circumpolar Indigenous films outdoors in a theatre made of snow. This year, programming will be run by Associate Curator of Indigenous Ways and Decolonization at the National Gallery of Canada Jocelyn Piirainen and musician and multimedia artist Geronimo Inutiq. The 2024 program included animated short films Qalupalik by Ame Papatsie and Lumaajuuq by Alethea Arnaquq-Baril, so we can’t wait to see what films Piirainen and Inutiq include this year!