Ikayukta Tunnillie

Inuit

Ikayukta Tunnillie was born in Cape Dorset in 1911, and passed away in 1980. She was an Inuit artist who began printmaking with the West Baffin Eskimo Co-operative, which was established in 1959 and pivotal to the development of stonecut printmaking in Cape Dorset. Encouraged by her daughter Kakulu, Ikayukta began drawing while living in Aqiatalaulavik. Her work was first featured in the 1971 Cape Dorset Annual Collection, where she was among fourteen selected artists. Through her drawings, Tunnillie supported her family, finding both sustenance and quiet fulfillment in her practice.