Origins and Ancestry: Abraham Anghik Ruben at the Museum of Inuit Art
Narratives permeate the sculptures of Canadian artist Abraham Anghik Ruben, telling tales of war, trade, hunting, spirituality, and ancient Inuit and Viking beliefs. His collection of work, spanning more than 40 years, is both a tribute to his ancestral past, and a contemporary interpretation of his personal heritage.
Ruben is the subject of an exhibition at the Museum of Inuit Art (MIA) in Toronto: Beyond Aurora Borealis: Abraham Anghik Ruben, which features a collection of new, large-scale sculptures. “We have a previous relationship with Abraham from displaying his earlier works, so we were really excited to learn more about this new series,” said Brittany Holliss, MIA Manager of Operations, in an interview with NGC Magazine.
The exhibition — created in partnership with the Kipling Gallery in Woodbridge, Ontario — reflects not only Ruben’s extensive ancestral knowledge, but also his ability to present such information in an innovative way. “A lot of our visitors come into the Museum with preconceptions of what ‘Inuit Art’ is,” says Holliss, “but this exhibition differs from what they might be expecting to see. These new works serve to emphasize contemporary interpretations of historical subject matter.”