The Carleton University Art Gallery (CUAG) celebrated the opening of its fall exhibitions on Sept. 17.
This fall, the gallery is featuring Here Be Dragons, a group exhibit featuring the work of seven contemporary artists, and Alootook Ipellie: Walking Both Sides of an Invisible Border, an exhibit of art from renowned Inuit cartoonist Alootook Ipellie.
Over 50 people attended the launch party. The party hosted Carleton’s president Benoit-Antoine Bacon and Natan Obed, the president of an organization that protects Inuit rights in Canada.
“These pieces make you think about the colonial period we’re still in,” Obed said.
Obed spoke to say that he is excited to see how people approach the future, especially in art.
“These artists, especially Alootook, the visual poet, greet the natural world, our world and the creative world, in ways that make us see the problems now differently,” said Obed. “In a way that can give some Inuit humour but also leave a lasting impression.”
Bacon said he already views the new exhibitions as a proud Carleton achievement. “It’s a privilege to have such a superb art gallery,” Bacon said. “It’s rewarding to have such a large part of Inuit art featured in our collections.”
Both exhibits feature diverse social and cultural issues.
Alootook Ipellie’s art exhibit features more than 100 of the late Inuit artist’s works, loaned from over 20 organizations in Canada and Europe.
The Here Be Dragons exhibit features artwork with themes of social critique and protest, with a variety of art forms, from sculpture to photography.
“I come every year and every year my mind is blown!” Samah Sabra, a launch attendee, said. “I always walk away with a greater appreciation for art.”
“My cousin is the president of the Inuit Tapiriit Katanami so Inuit culture is a very important part of my family,” Maggie Bryan, a Carleton student, said. “It’s wonderful to see the cultural importance of these groups in an exhibition of this size.”
“When fear and information is used to divide, artists show us the way back,” Sandra Dyck, CUAG director, said in closing speeches.
Here Be Dragons and Alootook Ipellie: Walking Both Sides of an Invisible Border will be on for viewing at the gallery until Dec. 9.
