Arctic Arts Summit

Highlights from the event that brings together artists, curators, arts workers and policy-makers from the circumpolar North.
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The Dakhká Khwáan Dancers lead a procession during the Arctic Arts Summit’s Nuihařuq event at the Kwanlin Dün Cultural Centre, Whitehorse, YT, 2022© COURTESY YUKON ARTS CENTRE PHOTO MIKE THOMAS

Every two years, the Arctic Arts Summit brings together representatives of the Arctic countries and the Indigenous Nations of the circumpolar region. The Summit’s main objectives are to strengthen arts and culture in the North and to develop circumpolar cooperation that will stimulate ongoing, sustainable collaboration in arts and creative industries throughout the region. 

The first Arctic Arts Summit was held in Norway, initiated by the Arctic Arts Festival and hosted in 2017 by the Norwegian Ministry of Culture and Arts Council Norway. The second Summit was in Finland, hosted in 2019 by the Finnish Ministry of Education and Culture, the Arts Promotion Centre Finland (Taike), and the University of Lapland. 

The 2022 Arctic Arts Summit, co-hosted by the Canada Council for the Arts and the Government of Yukon and co-organized by the Inuit Art Foundation and many other partners, brought together representatives of the Arctic countries and the Indigenous Nations of the circumpolar region on the traditional territories of the Kwanlin Dün First Nation and the Ta’an Kwäch’än Council in Whitehorse, YT.

Enjoy these interviews, editorials and artist profiles from the Arctic Arts Summit Digital Platform, curated and commissioned by the Inuit Art Foundation, that showcase projects, stories and initiatives across the global North—and to extend conversations beyond the 2022 event.