Kablusiak

This series of seasonal atikluks explore the history of Mother Hubbard parka designs from Kablusiak's family’s home communities in the Inuvialuit Settlement Region (Tuktoyaktuk & Sachs Harbour). The history of this design is directly tied to colonialism, paternalism, cultural and sexual repression, and misogyny. Introduced to Inuit by Christian missionaries around the 1920’s, the knee- or ankle-length design quickly spread as a means of control and assimilation, and to impose modesty upon Inuit who were perceived as ‘uncivilized savages.’ Yet today, the Mother Hubbard parka design has been profoundly reclaimed and integrated into northern communities. No longer is its representation tied to the Church, instead it stands as a marker of Inuvialuit culture, adaptation and continuity. The materials speak to a common theme in Kablusiak's practice of blurring the lines between traditional and modern, meeting and embracing history from a perspective that is in the present.