Accessibility Statement Skip Navigation
  • Resources
  • Blog
  • Journalists
  • Webcasts
  • Data Privacy
  • Français
  • my CNW 
    • Login
    • Register
  • Client Login 
    • Online Member Centre
    • Next Gen Communications Cloud
    • Cision Communications Cloud®
  • Sign Up
  • Send a Release
Return to PR Newswire homepage
  • News
  • Products
  • Contact
When typing in this field, a list of search results will appear and be automatically updated as you type.

Searching for your content...

No results found. Please change your search terms and try again.
Advanced Search
  • News in Focus
      • Browse News Releases

      • All News Releases
      • All Public Company
      • News Releases Overview

      • Multimedia Gallery

      • All Multimedia
      • All Photos
      • All Videos
      • Multimedia Gallery Overview

      • Trending Topics

      • All Trending Topics
  • Business
      • Auto & Transportation

      • All Automotive & Transportation
      • Aerospace, Defense
      • Air Freight
      • Airlines & Aviation
      • Automotive
      • Maritime & Shipbuilding
      • Railroads and Intermodal Transportation
      • Supply Chain/Logistics
      • Transportation, Trucking & Railroad
      • Travel
      • Trucking and Road Transportation
      • Auto & Transportation Overview

      • View All Auto & Transportation

      • Business Technology

      • All Business Technology
      • Blockchain
      • Broadcast Tech
      • Computer & Electronics
      • Computer Hardware
      • Computer Software
      • Data Analytics
      • Electronic Commerce
      • Electronic Components
      • Electronic Design Automation
      • Financial Technology
      • High Tech Security
      • Internet Technology
      • Nanotechnology
      • Networks
      • Peripherals
      • Semiconductors
      • Business Technology Overview

      • View All Business Technology

      • Entertain­ment & Media

      • All Entertain­ment & Media
      • Advertising
      • Art
      • Books
      • Entertainment
      • Film and Motion Picture
      • Magazines
      • Music
      • Publishing & Information Services
      • Radio & Podcast
      • Television
      • Entertain­ment & Media Overview

      • View All Entertain­ment & Media

      • Financial Services & Investing

      • All Financial Services & Investing
      • Accounting News & Issues
      • Acquisitions, Mergers and Takeovers
      • Banking & Financial Services
      • Bankruptcy
      • Bond & Stock Ratings
      • Conference Call Announcements
      • Contracts
      • Cryptocurrency
      • Dividends
      • Earnings
      • Earnings Forecasts & Projections
      • Financing Agreements
      • Insurance
      • Investments Opinions
      • Joint Ventures
      • Mutual Funds
      • Private Placement
      • Real Estate
      • Restructuring & Recapitalization
      • Sales Reports
      • Shareholder Activism
      • Shareholder Meetings
      • Stock Offering
      • Stock Split
      • Venture Capital
      • Financial Services & Investing Overview

      • View All Financial Services & Investing

      • General Business

      • All General Business
      • Awards
      • Commercial Real Estate
      • Corporate Expansion
      • Earnings
      • Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG)
      • Human Resource & Workforce Management
      • Licensing
      • New Products & Services
      • Obituaries
      • Outsourcing Businesses
      • Personnel Announcements
      • Real Estate Transactions
      • Residential Real Estate
      • Small Business Services
      • Socially Responsible Investing
      • Surveys, Polls and Research
      • Trade Show News
      • General Business Overview

      • View All General Business

  • Science & Tech
      • Consumer Technology

      • All Consumer Technology
      • Artificial Intelligence
      • Blockchain
      • Cloud Computing/Internet of Things
      • Computer Electronics
      • Computer Hardware
      • Computer Software
      • Consumer Electronics
      • Cryptocurrency
      • Data Analytics
      • Electronic Commerce
      • Electronic Gaming
      • Financial Technology
      • Mobile Entertainment
      • Multimedia & Internet
      • Peripherals
      • Social Media
      • STEM (Science, Tech, Engineering, Math)
      • Supply Chain/Logistics
      • Wireless Communications
      • Consumer Technology Overview

      • View All Consumer Technology

      • Energy & Natural Resources

      • All Energy
      • Alternative Energies
      • Chemical
      • Electrical Utilities
      • Gas
      • General Manufacturing
      • Mining
      • Mining & Metals
      • Oil & Energy
      • Oil and Gas Discoveries
      • Utilities
      • Water Utilities
      • Energy & Natural Resources Overview

      • View All Energy & Natural Resources

      • Environ­ment

      • All Environ­ment
      • Conservation & Recycling
      • Environmental Issues
      • Environmental Policy
      • Environmental Products & Services
      • Green Technology
      • Natural Disasters
      • Environ­ment Overview

      • View All Environ­ment

      • Heavy Industry & Manufacturing

      • All Heavy Industry & Manufacturing
      • Aerospace & Defense
      • Agriculture
      • Chemical
      • Construction & Building
      • General Manufacturing
      • HVAC (Heating, Ventilation and Air-Conditioning)
      • Machinery
      • Machine Tools, Metalworking and Metallurgy
      • Mining
      • Mining & Metals
      • Paper, Forest Products & Containers
      • Precious Metals
      • Textiles
      • Tobacco
      • Heavy Industry & Manufacturing Overview

      • View All Heavy Industry & Manufacturing

      • Telecomm­unications

      • All Telecomm­unications
      • Carriers and Services
      • Mobile Entertainment
      • Networks
      • Peripherals
      • Telecommunications Equipment
      • Telecommunications Industry
      • VoIP (Voice over Internet Protocol)
      • Wireless Communications
      • Telecomm­unications Overview

      • View All Telecomm­unications

  • Lifestyle & Health
      • Consumer Products & Retail

      • All Consumer Products & Retail
      • Animals & Pets
      • Beers, Wines and Spirits
      • Beverages
      • Bridal Services
      • Cannabis
      • Cosmetics and Personal Care
      • Fashion
      • Food & Beverages
      • Furniture and Furnishings
      • Home Improvement
      • Household, Consumer & Cosmetics
      • Household Products
      • Jewelry
      • Non-Alcoholic Beverages
      • Office Products
      • Organic Food
      • Product Recalls
      • Restaurants
      • Retail
      • Supermarkets
      • Toys
      • Consumer Products & Retail Overview

      • View All Consumer Products & Retail

      • Entertain­ment & Media

      • All Entertain­ment & Media
      • Advertising
      • Art
      • Books
      • Entertainment
      • Film and Motion Picture
      • Magazines
      • Music
      • Publishing & Information Services
      • Radio & Podcast
      • Television
      • Entertain­ment & Media Overview

      • View All Entertain­ment & Media

      • Health

      • All Health
      • Biometrics
      • Biotechnology
      • Clinical Trials & Medical Discoveries
      • Dentistry
      • FDA Approval
      • Fitness/Wellness
      • Health Care & Hospitals
      • Health Insurance
      • Infection Control
      • International Medical Approval
      • Medical Equipment
      • Medical Pharmaceuticals
      • Mental Health
      • Pharmaceuticals
      • Supplementary Medicine
      • Health Overview

      • View All Health

      • Sports

      • All Sports
      • General Sports
      • Outdoors, Camping & Hiking
      • Sporting Events
      • Sports Equipment & Accessories
      • Sports Overview

      • View All Sports

      • Travel

      • All Travel
      • Amusement Parks and Tourist Attractions
      • Gambling & Casinos
      • Hotels and Resorts
      • Leisure & Tourism
      • Outdoors, Camping & Hiking
      • Passenger Aviation
      • Travel Industry
      • Travel Overview

      • View All Travel

  • Policy & Public Interest
      • Policy & Public Interest

      • All Policy & Public Interest
      • Advocacy Group Opinion
      • Animal Welfare
      • Canadian Federal Government
      • Canadian Municipal Government
      • Canadian Provincial Government
      • Corporate Social Responsibility
      • Domestic Policy
      • Economic News, Trends, Analysis
      • Education
      • Environmental
      • European Government
      • FDA Approval
      • Federal and State Legislation
      • Federal Executive Branch & Agency
      • Foreign Policy & International Affairs
      • Homeland Security
      • Labor & Union
      • Legal Issues
      • Natural Disasters
      • Not For Profit
      • Patent Law
      • Public Safety
      • Trade Policy
      • Policy & Public Interest Overview

      • View All Policy & Public Interest

  • People & Culture
      • People & Culture

      • All People & Culture
      • Aboriginal, First Nations & Native American
      • African American
      • Asian American
      • Children
      • Diversity, Equity & Inclusion
      • Hispanic
      • Lesbian, Gay & Bisexual
      • Men's Interest
      • People with Disabilities
      • Religion
      • Senior Citizens
      • Veterans
      • Women
      • People & Culture Overview

      • View All People & Culture

  • Advanced Search
  • Overview
  • Cision Communications Cloud®
  • Monitoring
  • Distribution
  • Multimedia
  • Guaranteed Paid Placement
  • AI Tools
  • IR
  • Become a Client
  • Request a Demo
  • Editorial Bureaus
  • Partnerships
  • General Enquiries
  • Media
  • Worldwide Offices
  • Hamburger menu
  • Cision Canada
  • Send a Release
  • FR
    • Phone

    • 877-269-7890 from 8 AM - 10 PM ET

    • ALL CONTACT INFO
    • Contact Cision

      877-269-7890
      from 8 AM - 10 PM ET

  • Send a Release
  • Sign Up
  • Resources
  • Blog
  • Journalists
  • Webcasts
  • GDPR
  • News in Focus
    • Browse All News
    • Multimedia Gallery
    • Trending Topics
  • Business
    • Auto & Transportation
    • Business Technology
    • Entertain­ment & Media
    • Financial Services & Investing
    • General Business
  • Science & Tech
    • Consumer Technology
    • Energy & Natural Resources
    • Environ­ment
    • Heavy Industry & Manufacturing
    • Telecomm­unications
  • Lifestyle & Health
    • Consumer Products & Retail
    • Entertain­ment & Media
    • Health
    • Sports
    • Travel
  • Policy & Public Interest
    • Policy & Public Interest
  • People & Culture
    • People & Culture
  • Send a Release
  • Sign Up
  • Resources
  • Blog
  • Journalists
  • Webcasts
  • GDPR
  • Overview
  • Cision Communications Cloud®
  • Monitoring
  • Distribution
  • Multimedia
  • Guaranteed Paid Placement
  • AI Tools
  • IR
  • Send a Release
  • Sign Up
  • Resources
  • Blog
  • Journalists
  • Webcasts
  • GDPR
  • Become a Client
  • Request a Demo
  • Editorial Bureaus
  • Partnerships
  • General Enquiries
  • Media
  • Worldwide Offices
  • Send a Release
  • Sign Up
  • Resources
  • Blog
  • Journalists
  • Webcasts
  • GDPR

Manasie Akpaliapik. Inuit Universe. The Raymond Brousseau Collection Français


News provided by

Musée national des beaux-arts du Québec

Jun 17, 2021, 12:54 ET

Share this article

Share toX

Share this article

Share toX

New exhibition
From June 18, 2021 to February 12, 2023

QUÉBEC CITY, June 17, 2021 /CNW Telbec/ - Inuit art is fascinating and engaging. The Musée national des beaux-arts du Québec (MNBAQ) will celebrate the diversity of this age-old culture in a singular manner from June 18, 2021, to February 12, 2023, through the work of Manasie Akpaliapik, one of the foremost Inuit sculptors of his generation. 

Continue Reading
Manasie Akpaliapik, Fear of Losing One’s Culture, about 2000, whalebone, caribou antler, white stone and black African wonderstone, 68 x 78 x 20 cm. (DPD.2016.07) © Manasie Akpaliapik // A Woman Storyteller, 2003, whalebone, sinew, caribou antler, baleen, white stone and black African wonderstone, 65 x 37 x 61.2 cm. (DPD.2016.19) © Manasie Akpaliapik. Musée national des beaux arts du Québec, promised gift of Raymond Brousseau Photo: MNBAQ, Idra Labrie (CNW Group/Musée national des beaux-arts du Québec)
Manasie Akpaliapik, Fear of Losing One’s Culture, about 2000, whalebone, caribou antler, white stone and black African wonderstone, 68 x 78 x 20 cm. (DPD.2016.07) © Manasie Akpaliapik // A Woman Storyteller, 2003, whalebone, sinew, caribou antler, baleen, white stone and black African wonderstone, 65 x 37 x 61.2 cm. (DPD.2016.19) © Manasie Akpaliapik. Musée national des beaux arts du Québec, promised gift of Raymond Brousseau Photo: MNBAQ, Idra Labrie (CNW Group/Musée national des beaux-arts du Québec)

Manasie Akpaliapik is the first museum monograph devoted to the artist from the especially fertile environment of Baffin Island in Nunavut. Inuit Universe. The Raymond Brousseau Collection will enable visitors to undertake a unique, exciting journey to the northern territory.

The exhibition proposes an outstanding collection of 40 sculptures, produced between 1997 and 2003, drawn mainly from the Raymond Brousseau Collection. In 2005, with financial assistance from Hydro-Québec, the major collector and Inuit art dealer from Québec City donated 2 635 works to the MNBAQ, making it one of the most remarkable collections in Canada, in which Manasie Akpaliapik's sculptures figure prominently.

"Manasie Akpaliapik proposes striking works that meld the traditional and the contemporary. The themes and materiality of his work appeal to our emotions and our senses. A striking encounter with an outstanding artist awaits you." Jean–Luc Murray, Director General of the Musée national des beaux-arts du Québec said.

Nature is central to Manasie Akpaliapik's creation

"Sometimes I am unable to verbalize what I feel inwardly,
which I then express through my art."
- Manasie Akpaliapik

In perfect symbiosis with nature, the artist has for more than five decades sought in his ancestral environment the inspiration and the materials that spawn in his imaginative universe unique, astonishing, indeed very profound works. His sculptures are fascinating objects imbued with symbols of the mythology of the North and the multifaceted use of the elements selected. They tell the story of the Inuit and encourage reflection at a time when relations between humankind, nature, and the climate are of paramount concern.

Incredibly powerful sculptures

Manasie Akpaliapik. Inuit Universe. The Raymond Brousseau Collection broaches varied, captivating themes: Animals; Talilayuq, Goddess of the Sea; Stories and Legends; The Inuit and His Culture; The Sacred Owl; and Shamanism. Representations of wildlife, legends of the North, the supernatural world, the transmission of knowledge, and the Arctic environment embodied in three dimensions characterize by and large the works exhibited.

Among the masterpieces in the exhibition, mention should be made of La Peur de perdre sa culture (circa 2000), made of whale bone and caribou antler. It strikingly illustrates how, after World War II, federal authorities forced the Inuit to adopt the lifestyle of southern residents, thereby making them renounce nomadism for a settled mode of life. Their traditional way of life was systematically uprooted and Christianity was imposed on them. The shaman personified has been split in two by the devastating impacts on his community of this new way of life.

Another sculpture broaches a well-known theme of Inuit mythology, that of the legend of Talilayuq, or Sedna: Talilayuq, Goddess of the Sea (2000), made of whale bone, caribou antler, fieldstone, and alabaster. The work relates a story handed down through the generations that tells how the goddess, half woman, half fish, rules over all marine animals. When angry, Talilayuq traps the marine animals in her hair and only the shaman's intervention can calm her and free the imprisoned wildlife.

The works Un Inuit songeant à l'univers (2000), Un jeune homme exposant fièrement le fait que ses connaissances proviennent des aînés et de ses ancêtres (1997) and Phoques (circa 2000), clearly reveal the sculptor's skill. Visitors can appreciate his unique manner of combining different materials such as whale bone, caribou antler, ox horn, alabaster, or Brazil soapstone, and the virtuosity of this master sculptor.

An art that has changed over time

The peoples of the circumpolar regions have carved stone and ivory for thousands of years. Starting in the 16th century, contacts between the Inuit and explorers fostered trade. It was only in the first half of the 20th century, at a time when the nomadic northern populations adopted a settled mode of life and had to find a livelihood that the first cooperatives were established and artists began to produce prints and large-scale sculptures sent to the south. Manasie Akpaliapik's artistic career perfectly illustrates changes in Inuit art over time.

A fabulous journey to the land of the Inuit

The exhibition's staging evokes the northern territories, reproducing the horizon between the sky and the sea or between the sky and the land. The artist's sculptures are arranged in a circular space bathed in theatrical lighting, thus creating a unique atmosphere in which subtle modulation of the light echoes the solar cycle in the Arctic circle. The custom-made furnishings evoke the morphology of the Arctic landform.

Complementary explorations

Aside from discovering the artist's sculptures in an inspiring space, visitors are invited to examine Manasie Akpaliapik's creative process through two mediation spaces.

At the entrance to the exhibition room, a story accompanied by a series of photographs evokes the artist's annual trips to his native region in ᐃᒃᐱᐊᕐᔪᒃ, Ikpiarjuk (Arctic Bay), to collect whale bones washed up on the beach, aided by members of his family and his community of origin. The trips ranging over thousands of kilometres devoted to collecting his favourite material seem indissociable from the subsequent creative work in the artist's studio. Visitors will also discover the artist's profound, unfailing respect for the animals, from the collection of bones washed up on the beaches of Nunavut to the discovery of the subject that emerges from each fragment of material.

To conclude the exhibition, an alcove presents a selection of photographs focusing on the two geographic poles that characterize Manasie Akpaliapik's artistic practice: his studio, in southern Ontario, and his native region in the Arctic, to which he returns every year. In addition to these visual souvenirs, a whale vertebra loaned by the Group for Research and Education on Marine Mammals enables visitors to become familiar with this unusual material.

In the same area, visitors can also watch a continuous video in which Manasie Akpaliapik recounts his life trajectory and creative process.

Manasie Akpaliapik in a nutshell 

Manasie Akpaliapik is a native of Baffin Island in Nunavut, more specifically the village of Ikpiarjuk (Arctic Bay), one of the northernmost Inuit sites in Canada's Far North. He was born in 1955 in a small community of seal hunters. From childhood, he devoted himself to sculpture by observing members of his family, including his grandparents and one of his aunts. In the early 1980s, he became a professional sculptor. The work of this outstanding observer of the oral tradition, moral values, wildlife, the supernatural world, and the Arctic environment revealed itself in Montréal and Toronto.

Carved in whale bones, caribou antlers, or walrus ivory, the works of this master stone carver can also be hewn in an exceptional manner out of Brazil soapstone, dolomite, or even marble. Manasie Akpaliapik's sculptures exert tremendous attractive power and are admired in the leading museum and private collections in Canada, but also in the United States, and Europe.

Raymond Brousseau and
Manasie Akpaliapik, a unique bond

The MNBAQ has for several years enjoyed privileged relations with the great Québec City Inuit art collector and dealer Raymond Brousseau. His collection, one of the most prestigious in the world, is showcased in the Ilippunga room in the Pierre Lassonde Pavilion, where a number of the most outstanding works are displayed. They include La Maternité and Hommage aux animaux, two major sculptures by Manasie Akpaliapik that delight visitors.

Moreover, the ties that unite the collector and the artist go back 40 years and are imbued with deep-seated admiration, great respect, and genuine friendship. Raymond Brousseau does not hesitate to describe Manasie Akpaliapik as the foremost Inuit artist of all time. In 2005, when the time came to relinquish his collection, Mr. Brousseau kept 37 of Manasie Akpaliapik's sculptures, which visitors can admire at the exhibition. With the future acquisition of these outstanding works and through a generous donation by the collector, the MNBAQ will become the depositary of the biggest collection of works by Manasie Akpaliapik ever assembled.

Credits

Manasie Akpaliapik. Univers inuit. La collection Raymond Brousseau, an exhibition developed by the Musée national des beaux-arts du Québec.

Directorship
Annie GAUTHIER
Director of Collections and Exhibitions, MNBAQ

Management
Pascal NORMANDIN
Head of Exhibitions and Curatorial, MNBAQ

Yasmée Faucher
Head of Museography, MNBAQ

Catherine GAUMOND
Head of Collections, MNBAQ

Curatorship
Daniel DROUIN
Curator of Ancient Art and in charge of the Inuit Art Collection from 2005 to 2020,
MNBAQ

Exhibition and Graphic Design 
Marie-France Grondin
Designer, MNBAQ

Scenario and texts of gallery panels and labels
Manasie AKPALIAPIK
Annie AKPALIAPIK
Daniel DROUIN

Gallery Mediation
Delphine EGESBORG
Head of Family Mediation, MNBAQ

The Musée national des beaux-arts du Québec is a state corporation funded by the Gouvernement du Québec. 

Manasie Akpaliapik. Inuit Universe. The Raymond Brousseau Collection
Gérard-Morisset Pavilion of the MNBAQ
From June 18, 2021 to February 12, 2023

SOURCE Musée national des beaux-arts du Québec

418 643-2150 or 1 866 220-2150 / mnbaq.org

Related Links

https://www.mnbaq.org/

Modal title

Organization Profile

Musée national des beaux-arts du Québec

    Also from this source

  • Fiona Annis will produce the public artwork at the Riopelle Space

  • The 2025 MNBAQ Contemporary Art Award - A fascinating group exhibition showcases the five prize-winners

  • /R E P E A T -- INVITATION TO THE MEDIA - This multifaceted adventure is sure to spark the imagination/

Contact Cision

  • 866-245-2317
    from 8 AM - 10 PM ET
  • Become a Client
  • Request a Demo
  • Editorial Bureaus
  • Partnerships
  • General Enquiries
  • Media

Products

  • Cision Communications Cloud®
  • Media Monitoring
  • Content Distribution
  • Multimedia Distribution
  • Measurement & Analytics
  • Investor Relations

About

  • About Cision Canada
  • About Cision
  • Media Partners
  • Careers
  • Accessibility Statement
  • APAC
  • APAC - Simplified Chinese
  • APAC - Traditional Chinese
  • Brazil
  • Canada
  • Czech
  • Denmark
  • Finland
  • France
  • Germany
  • India
  • Indonesia
  • Israel
  • Japan
  • Korea
  • Mexico
  • Middle East
  • Middle East - Arabic
  • Netherlands
  • Norway
  • Poland
  • Portugal
  • Russia
  • Slovakia
  • Spain
  • Sweden
  • United States
  • Vietnam

My Services

  • All News Releases
  • Online Member Centre
  • Next Gen Communications Cloud
  • Cision Communications Cloud®
  • my CNW

Do not sell or share my personal information:

  • Submit via [email protected] 
  • Call Privacy toll-free: 877-297-8921

Contact Cision

Products

About

My Services
  • All News Releases
  • Online Member Centre
  • Next Gen Communications Cloud
  • Cision Communications Cloud
  • my CNW
877-269-7890
from 8 AM - 10 PM ET
  • Terms of Use
  • Information Security Policy
  • Site Map
  • Cookie Settings
  • Accessibility Statement
Copyright © 2025 CNW Group Ltd. All Rights Reserved. A Cision company.