Deantha Edmunds Wins Newfoundland and Labrador Arts’ Artist of the Year Award
Deantha Edmunds won the Artist of the Year Award at the Newfoundland and Labrador Arts (ArtsNL) Awards on June 21, 2024, National Indigenous Peoples Day. Edmunds, a classical soprano from Corner Brook, NL, and based in St. John’s, NL, is also known as Canada’s first Inuk opera singer. She performs across the country and internationally, and her body of work showcases Nunatsiavut music traditions and Indigenous stories through classical music. In 2023 Edmunds was longlisted for the Kenojuak Ashevak Memorial Award and named a Member of the Order of Canada. Nunatsiavut Inuk sculptor Billy Gauthier and recording artist Rachel Cousins were also nominated for Artist of the Year award. Winners in all six categories received a $2,500 cash prize.
Billy Gauthier Solo Exhibition Opens at Kitchener-Waterloo Art Gallery
Billy Gauthier’s first mid-career survey outside of his home province of Newfoundland and Labrador is now on view at the Kitchener-Waterloo Art Gallery (KWAG) in Ontario. Entitled Sila, the solo exhibition showcases Gauthier’s dynamic body of sculptural work that spans decades. Based in North West River, NL, Gauthier is a Nunatsiavut Inuk artist and activist who began making sculptures in 1996. Since then, he has developed a large body of work of mixed-media sculptures often using organic materials like bone, ivory, stone and antler. In conjunction with the exhibition, KWAG will publish the first major monograph on Gauthier this fall. Sila is on view until October 20, 2024.
CRTC Announces Major Funding for Indigenous Screen Office
On June 4, 2024, the Indigenous Screen Office (ISO) announced that it will receive an estimated $200 million in funding from the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) to support Indigenous production. The news follows Canadian Heritage’s recent announcement of permanent funding to the ISO of $13 million annually. The ISO is an independent Indigenous-led organization that supports Indigenous storytelling and narrative sovereignty on screen. As the first organization of its kind in Canada, it has supported screen projects by First Nations, Inuit and Métis creators since 2017.
Rapper Leo Matthew Drops Single from Debut Album
Leo Matthew, a young rapper from Kimmirut, NU, currently based in Quebec City, has released his single “I.N.U.K.” from his forthcoming debut album, The Boy From Nunavut. The single dropped on National Indigenous Peoples Day, June 21, 2024, and the six-track album is described by the artist as “very uplifting, with a lot of hip hop beats,” while paying homage to friends, family and persevering through hardships. Produced by the Nunavut-based recording label Hitmakerz, “I.N.U.K.” was recorded at their Toronto studio by engineers who have worked with Drake and Dua Lipa. Matthew released his debut single, “Alive,” under the stage name Inukutaa in 2023; this new release marks the first under the name Leo Matthew. The Boy From Nunavut will be available to stream on all platforms on July 26, 2024.
Sámi Film The Tundra Within Me Nominated for Three Amanda Awards
The Tundra Within Me (2023) has been nominated for three Amanda Awards, given annually as part of the Norwegian International Film Festival in Haugesund, Norway. Directed by Sara Margrethe Oskal, a Sámi director, actress and writer, the film is a finalist for Best Lead Role (Risten Anine Gaup), Best Supporting Role (Berit Anne O. Kemi) and Best Costume Design (Anna Margaretha Oskal). “It is wonderful that Sámi films are gaining this recognition . . . it gives me the courage and motivation to continue with acting,” says Risten Anine Gaup, who plays the lead role of Lena, a woman who moves back to Sápmi with her young son after living in Oslo for many years and falls in love with a reindeer herder. Winners will be announced in an awards ceremony in Festiviteten Concert Hall in Haugesund on August 23, 2024.
Aija Komangapik Designs Coin to Celebrate Iqaluit’s 25th Anniversary
Visual artist Aija Komangapik has designed a commemorative $20 silver coin for Nunavut’s 25th anniversary. Commissioned by the Royal Canadian Mint, the coin features an Inuk mother dancing in the sun wearing a large amauti filled with smaller people that represent Nunavummiut. “I want to say, ‘Oh look…we are happy people,’” Komangapik said in an interview about the coin. Komangapik was born and raised in Iqaluit, NU, and is currently based in Ottawa, ON. Her art practice focuses on depicting joyous moments in Inuit culture, like drum dancers and traditional hunters, through bright colours. In 2019 she illustrated the book Country Food (Inhabit Media) and won the Indigenous Arts and Stories contest from Historica Canada for her piece Drum Dancer. In 2020, Komangapik designed the Canadian Indigenous History Month emoji for Twitter.