As the new year turns over, it’s time to look ahead and see what exciting things 2024 has in store. From solo exhibitions to festivals, town-wide installations to a landmark showing at the next Venice Biennale, consider this your guide to Inuit art in 2024.

-miutMitchell Art Gallery
January 19–March 28, 2024
Edmonton, AB

Curated by Ooleepeeka Eegeesiak, -miut will include works by Yvonne Moorhouse, Atsinak Bishop, Alberta Rose W./Ingniq, Kablusiak and Sarah Whalen Lunn as it examines the relationship between geography and identity. Belonging to place is deeply entwined with Inuit identity, so much so that there is a specific suffix in Inuktitut and other Inuit languages, -miut, which amends the names of places to mean “people of [that place],” from which the exhibition derives its name. -miut will consider what it means to be an Inuk living in Treaty 6 and 7 territories through the lens of these contemporary artists.

Outi Pieski Halo (2012–2013) Birch branch, thread and wood 380 x 200 x 200 cm © THE ARTIST

Outi PieskiTate St Ives
February 10–May 6, 2024
St Ives, England

The first large-scale exhibition of the Sámi visual artist’s work in the United Kingdom, Outi Pieski will feature pieces that contemplate themes of ancestral return, Indigenous people’s rights, and the relationship between humans, animals and nature. This connection between the natural environment and its inhabitants is a frequent theme in Pieski’s work and often makes itself felt through large-scale textile installations which feature tassels based on traditional clothing and references to the traditional arts practice of duodji. This exhibition will include figurative landscapes, photographs and prints alongside sculptural works and a new, large-scale installation piece the artist will complete during her residency at Porthmeor Studios in January. 

Joar Nango Girjegumpi: The Sámi Architecture Library (2023) Dimensions variable COURTESY ARKDES © THE ARTIST

Bodø2024Throughout 2024
Municipality of Bodø, Norway

In 2024 the municipality of Bodø (located in Sápmi along the coast of the Norwegian Sea) will become a European Capital of Culture, the first time a municipality within the Arctic Circle has been awarded that status. As part of the year’s events, the Bådåddjo Musea will present a year of programming highlight Sámi art and culture; the town will host a week-long celebration coinciding with National Sámi Day including exhibitions, installations, and a market in front of City Hall (February 3–11); and scholars, researchers and policy-makers will gather during the international Arctic Congress (May 29–June 3) and NAISA Conference (June 6–8). Throughout 2024 various spaces across Bodø will be animated by music, media installations and performances, including the immersive film installation ÁRRAN 360° (February 3) which debuted at the 59th Venice Biennale, the collaborative theatre trilogy Bïegke Beahteme (February 4–10), the choral music and joik performance Bálges ja stárffo (February 10–17) and the musical collaboration Det nye nord - The New North (September 27–28), among others.

Tim Pitsiulak Kinngait Point (2016) Coloured pencil 76.2 x 55.9 cm REPRODUCED WITH PERMISSION DORSET FINE ARTS COURTESY ART GALLERY OF GUELPH PHOTO MARTIN SCHWALBE © THE ARTIST

ᑕᐅᑐᑉᐹ Tautuppaa | Long Looking Tim PitsiulakArt Gallery of Guelph
January 18–May 12, 2024
Guelph, ON

Curated by Taqralik Partridge, ᑕᐅᑐᑉᐹ Tautuppaa | Long Looking Tim Pitsiulak will provide a comprehensive view of celebrated graphic artist Tim Pitsiulak’s distinctive artistic practice and imagination. The Kinngait (Cape Dorset), NU-based artist was known for highly detailed and vibrantly executed drawings in pencil, ink and chalk pastel that drew from his intimate knowledge of his homeland and often were concerned with issues of climate change and environmental exploitation. This exhibition will complement Pitsiulak’s work with pieces from other Inuit artists to examine the connections between individuals and their surroundings in an arctic environment whose climate conditions are in extreme flux.

Jessica Winters Hopedale (2023) © THE ARTIST

Up Front Mural Series: Jessica WintersOnsite Gallery
January 3–April 30, 2024
Toronto, ON

For the fifth installment of a mural series that has so far featured 2023 Sobey Art Award winner Kablusiak, visual artist Kyle Natkusiak Aleekuk, photographer Robert Kautuk and 2021 Kenojuak Ashevak Memorial Award winner Tarralik Duffy, painter Jessica Winters from Makkovik, Nunatsiavut, NL, will display a mural that examines memory, curiosity and the artist’s lived experiences on the land. Jointly commissioned by the Bonavista Biennale, the Inuit Art Foundation, Inuit Futures in Arts Leadership: The Pilimmaksarniq / Pijariuqsarniq Project and Onsite Gallery at OCAD University, the piece will be displayed on the outer wall of the gallery’s Richmond Street location from January to April, after which the sixth mural by Glenn Gear will be installed.

Inuuteq Storch Untitled (2010–2015) from the series At Home We Belong. Digital inkjet print on archival paper © THE ARTIST

Inuuteq StorchDanish Pavilion at the 60th Venice Biennale
April 20–November 24, 2024
Venice, Italy

Inuuteq Storch, a Kalaaleq photographer known for his intimate and snapshot-like depictions of life, land and history in Kalaallit Nunaat (Greenland), will become the first Kalaaleq artist and the first photographer to represent Denmark at the Venice Biennale when he installs his work in the Danish Pavilion in April. Storch’s work regularly engages the spaces between representations of everyday life and archival images of Greenlandic history and identity, which will no doubt remain an important methodology as his stark and poetic work activates the Danish Pavilion. His artwork will be curated by Luise Wolthers, Head of Research and Curator at the Hasselblad Foundation. Said Storch in a press release, “It’s an important sign of recognition to be inscribed in the history of the Biennale, which counts some of the world’s most outstanding artists.” 

Items from Bibi Chemnitz’s 2023 Outdoor Greenland sportswear collection © THE ARTIST

Plus: Inuit Art at Festivals in 2024

2024 presents an exciting year for Inuit at film, music and fashion events across the circumpolar world. The 4th annual Aulajut: Nunavut International Film Festival runs from February 22–25 and will feature Northern, Inuit and Indigenous films, with the majority in Inuktitut or with Inuktitut subtitles. Sisimiut, Kalaallit Nunaat-based, volunteer-driven music event Arctic Sounds will celebrate its 10th anniversary this year, with the festival running March 28–April 1, 2024 and featuring Kalaallit artists such as Tarrak, Hans-Ole, Andachan and Athena Lings, as well as acts from around the world. And the biennial Indigenous Fashion Arts Festival will come to Toronto from May 30–June 2, 2024, slated to include over 100 Indigenous artists and designers. This year’s lineup includes runway presentations by Ujaraatsiaq’s Garments, Taalrumiq, Arctic Luxe and Bibi Chemnitz, as well as marketplace presence from many more Inuit makers.