The Kenojuak Ashevak Memorial Award (KAMA) honours the late Kenojuak Ashevak, CC, ON, RCA and her tremendous impact on Inuit artists by supporting a mid-career artist with $10,000. Introduced this year, the shortlist showcases the incredible, diverse talent of contemporary Inuit artists, and awards each $3,000.

The multidisciplinary artist is the second winner of the IAF’s $10,000 prize, plus solo exhibition and residency at WAG-Qaumajuq.

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2021 Winner

On September 8, 2021, artist Tarralik Duffy became the second recipient of the prestigious Kenojuak Ashevak Memorial Award. Duffy was the first winner of the Kenojuak Ashevak Memorial Award to receive a solo exhibition, exhibition catalogue and residency at the Winnipeg Art Gallery-Qaumajuq thanks to a partnership between the WAG-Qaumajuq and the IAF. The WAG-Qaumajuq will also acquire one of Duffy’s works into its permanent collection. Duffy’s solo exhibition is scheduled for September 2023.

Duffy is an Inuk artist, writer and designer from Salliq (Coral Harbour), NU, and currently based in Saskatoon, SK. From jewelry and apparel to graphics, her  creative work shares distinctly Inuit experiences, often infused with humour and pop culture. Her work was featured on the cover of the Inuit Art Quarterly’s Winter 2018 issue, Exchange, and after winning the award, she took part in an artist residency at the Art Gallery of Guelph where her work was also included in their exhibition ᐃᓅᓯᕋ | Inuusira My Life in October 2021. Her work was also included in ᖃᐅᑕᒫᑦ | Qautamaat at the same gallery in 2022. Her work was included in a group show Atautchikun | wȃhkôtamowin at Remai Modern (Saskatoon 2021). Duffy had her first solo show, Pop, Chip, Kukuk, at SAW Gallery in Ottawa, ON in late 2022. In fall 2023, she will be taking part in a dedicated residency at Winnipeg Art Gallery-Qaumajuq and opening a solo show of new work there.

by IAQ
Tarralik Duffy is an explorer of ideas, traversing disciplines from her sun-bleached beluga-vertebrae jewellery to her pop-art illustrations of everyday objects, infused by a sly wit and Duffy’s deep connection to Inuit identity and experiences.

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Eldred Allen

Eldred Allen is an Inuk photographer from Rigolet, Nunatsiavut, NL. who uses handheld cameras, drones and 3D modelling to record the land around him and to immerse viewers in vast swaths of landscape. He holds Bachelor of Arts in Anthropology from the Memorial University of Newfoundland and an Advanced Diploma in Geographic Information Science and Cartography from the Centre of Geographic Sciences

by IAQ
He never set out to become an artist, but within a remarkable three years of pursuing his new passion, this landscape and wildlife photographer from Rigolet, Nunatsiavut, NL, has landed on the 2021 Kenojuak Ashevak Memorial Award shortlist.

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by IAQ
Multimedia artist Kablusiak is making old new again while honouring the materials and techniques that made Inuit art beloved across the globe.

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Couzyn van Heuvelen

Couzyn van Heuvelen was born in Iqaluit, NU and now resides in Bowmanville, ON. He works primarily in sculpture and installation and his practice is centred on themes of Inuit culture, identity. A graduate of the MFA program at NSCAD University, in 2018 he was longlisted for the Sobey Art Award.

by IAQ
This artist's exploration of material, scale and production processes transform elements of Inuit culture into new, unexpected forms, exploring material culture and the messages objects convey about Inuit culture.

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