Eric Anoee Sr.

Eric Anoee Sr., CM (1924-1989) was a multidisciplinary artist and respected hunter from the Kazan River Region, NU who later lived and worked in Arviat, NU. Anoee went on to produce many carvings, drawings and paintings during his life. On top of his artistic practice, Anoee was also a writer, knowledge keeper and catechist for the Anglican Church [1].

Anoee’s place in Inuit art history is significant as “he is the first documented Inuk to produce art in the Western tradition for his own enjoyment and for the Euro-Canadian market as early as the 1940s” [2]. He wrote for multiple publications as well as created The Eric Anoee Readers, which he illustrated and wrote to teach Inuktitut in classrooms throughout the Eastern Arctic. Anoee himself would also assist in teaching Inuktitut in schools [3].

In 1975, Anoee was appointed director of the Inuit Cultural Institute in Arviat and, in 1982, he received the Order of Canada from the Governor General for his contribution to education and Inuit culture [4]. He also gave the opening prayer in Inuktitut for the first conference on Aboriginal issues under Pierre Trudeau and was posthumously recognized by the Northwest Territories’ Education Minister with an award for his contributions to literacy in the Northwest Territories [4]. His work is held in the collections of the Winnipeg Art Gallery and Manitoba Museum in Winnipeg, MB, as well as the Museum of Anthropology in Vancouver, BC.