Jessie Oonark
Jessie Oonark was born in 1906 near Haningayok (Black River), in what is now Nunavut. She lived a traditional, semi-nomadic life well into adulthood, until she was widowed. In 1958, she settled with her children in Qamani’tuaq (Baker Lake), where she began drawing. Several of her drawings were included in the Kinngait (Cape Dorset) Annual Print Collections of 1960 and 1961, and over one hundred appeared in Baker Lake print collections from 1963 onward.
Oonark is recognized as one of the most influential first-generation Inuit artists involved in printmaking. She is also known for her wool and felt wall hangings, one of which is displayed in the Northwest Territories Legislative Assembly building. Her works, often colourful and symmetrically composed, are found in major galleries across Canada. Oonark was elected to the Royal Academy of Arts in 1975 and inducted as an Officer of the Order of Canada in 1984. She died the following year in Churchill, Manitoba.