David Kilabuk

David Kilabuk is a photographer based in Panniqtuuq (Pangnirtung), NU who captures the stories of his home community through his photos. Kilabuk has been interested in photography since childhood [1]. In the late 1970s, Kilabuk’s brothers began to take photographs with SLR cameras and Kilabuk followed suit. In 2004, he made the switch to digital cameras [2]. He has described this decision as the "best purchase I have made in my life" [3]. Digital photography has provided him with more opportunities to experiment with photography.

Kilabuk’s technical aptitude and eye for capturing movement is predominantly illustrated through his images of his community. Raven (2016) features a bird flying overhead. Kilabuk has photographed it at the exact moment when its full wingspan is spread and light shines through its wing tips. The contrast of the bird’s black body against the pale, overcast sky creates an impression that the raven has been removed from the landscape and abstracted. This work provides a glimpse of the wildlife found in the Canadian Arctic. Kilabuk has become the unofficial photographer of Panniqtuuq, with community members telling him about interesting events or happenings to capture and share [4]. His photography circulates more widely through his social media channels, with some of his work also appearing in National Geographic, Canadian Geographic and Above and Beyond. Kilabuk was selected as one of six photographers to watch in the Winter 2016 issue of the Inuit Art Quarterly.