Born and raised in Iqaluit, NU, Natashia Allakariallak is a multidisciplinary artist exploring themes of Inuit traditions and womanhood through printmaking, jewellery and performance.
“I’ve always been really in love with and obsessed with creating art,” says Allakariallak, who started out experimenting with naluaq (naturally bleached sealskin) to make simple geometric earrings for family and friends. Her creations were met with great interest online, where Allakariallak posted under her business name Sailiniq, which is named after her daughter Saili and means “to bring peace” in Inuktitut. She then expanded her designs to include organic materials like narwhal and walrus tusk, baleen, polar bear fur, fish leather, caribou antler and muskox horn in her minimalist jewellery. [1]
Under the guidance of Kuujjaq, Nunavik, QC-based artist Niap, Allakariallak started exploring linocut printmaking and painting. Her graphic works mirror her jewellery design in their mostly monochromatic colour scheme and repetition of geometric forms. In her 2021 print Qulliq Ikummattuq, a stone lamp is delicately balanced between a pedestal and red sun, echoing the voluptuous form of a woman found in previous works by the artist. “Some of my favourite things to express in my artwork would be the revitalization of traditional Inuit tattoos, my personal experience with motherhood—reflections of how bodies are changing through this experience, and reconnecting with and exploring new ideas based on traditional tools,” Allakariallak states.
She is also an accomplished performing artist, working as a singer-songwriter, actor and production assistant. Allakariallak was part of the cast in Kiviuq Returns: An Inuit Epic in 2017, then later the assistant stage manager from 2018-19. [2] When asked where she gets her inspiration, Allakariallak says she admires the self-expression of fellow Inuit artists Jessica Winters, Taqralik Partridge and Alethea Aggiuq Arnaquq-Baril, adding “it’s such a beautiful thing that we can all incorporate our culture in our art and celebrate it widely.”
This Profile was made possible through support from RBC Emerging Artists.