Kinngait | Cape Dorset 

The parents of Pudlalik Shaa, Aqjangajuk and Kilabuk Shaa, are both artists from Cape Dorset. His father, Aqjangajuk, is a renowned sculptor, while his brother, Alariaq, has also chosen the path of sculpture.

Strongly influenced by his father’s example, Pudlalik began sculpting at a very young age. “I watched my father carve, he taught me. I made my first sculpture when I was twelve years old: a small seal. Since then, I have continued to carve—not all the time, but whenever I feel inspired,” he recalls.

Impressed by his father’s style, Pudlalik developed similar themes in his own work, such as walrus and drum dancers. Like his father and the generation of sculptors before him, he learned by observing and working with traditional tools, particularly the axe. Although he now makes use of modern instruments, he still occasionally works with the axe and incorporates into his sculptures the fluidity and dynamic energy that characterize his father’s art.

(Excerpt from Cape Dorset Sculpture, Douglas & McIntyre, 2005)