Saimaiyu Akesuk

Saimaiyu Akesuk is an emerging Kinngait-based (Cape Dorset) artist that works in drawing and printmaking. Her art career began only a few years ago when she was encouraged by artist and friend, Ningeokuluk Teevee to experiment with printmaking. Art runs in Akesuk’s family, but she did not consider pursuing it herself until 2011, and now she is a regular in the studio [1].

In a feature for Inuit Art Quarterly, curator and writer Nancy Campbell describes Akesuk’s work as reminiscent of an older generation of artists, in particular Papiara Tukiki and Sheojuk Etidlooie [2]. This influence can in part be attributed to her pulling inspiration from her grandfather, Latcholassie Akesuk's carvings when she first began to draw. This led her to create unique and distinct work that utilizes bold colours and lines to depict the figures of animals and insects. Red Spider (2014) includes bright blue, pink and orange crescent shapes, which rundown a bright red oval back. The spider's eyes are small and at the front of the head with little pedipalps between the eyes by the mouth. Of the various creatures that occupy northern landscapes, insects do not usually come to mind as something that would thrive in cold climates. Akesuk's work dissolves this popular misconception and showcases the abundance of Arctic critters, which are an apt source of inspiration for her [3]. 

Saimaiyu Akesuk’s work has been included in exhibitions in both Canada and the United States, with a recent solo exhibition in 2017 at Froelick Gallery in Portland, OR. Akesuk also works full-time as a teacher.