Toonoo Sharky

TOONOO SHARKY        (SOROSEELKTOO)

Date of Birth:    June 5, 1970                                                     Male/Female:    Male E7-2729

Place of Birth:   Cape Dorset

Mother:             Ragee Killiktee
Father:              Josephee Sharky
                                                                                                                                                           
Toonoo is the son of the late carver, Josephee Sharky and Ragee Killiktee, who carves once in a while.  “My younger brothers, Napachie and Alasua are also carving”, says Toonoo.  He lives with Mary Saila, and they have an adopted child.

“I was influenced by my grandfather Kopapik Ragee, and also by Shorty Killiktee.  The first carving I did was at the age of ten.  I think it was a bird or a seal.”  Toonoo has been carving ever since and it has been his only source of income.  He likes to carve in serpentine and marble stone.  “I like the colours and also the textures of both stones.  When I’m starting on a piece of stone, I like to slowly work on the piece until the shape starts forming into a shape I can recognize.  Sometimes, I just go by the shape of the stone. My favourite subjects are bird figures with human faces.”

Toonoo’s favourite pastimes are carving, hunting, watching television and spending time with his family. He would also like to put together a collection of his carvings in the near future for his own solo exhibition.

                                                                        From an interview with Inuit Art
Information Centre, November, 1994.

EXHIBITIONS:

July                                                                 
First Nations Perspectives: Featuring Toonoo Sharky
Willock and Sax Ltd. Gallery
Waterton Lakes National Park, Alberta
(brochure)

May – June 1987                                              
(Inuit Art Exhibition)
Whitby Arts Incorporated,
The Station Gallery
Whitby, Ontario

February 1989                                                  
Arctic Images: Major Sculptures by Canada’s Leading Contemporary Eskimo (Inuit) Artists
At D’Erlien Fine Arts Limited
Presented by Orca Aart Gallery
Chicago, Illinois, U.S.A.

May 1989                                                         
Birds: Sculpture from Cape Dorset & Rock Ptarmigan Limited Edition
Print by Kananginak
The Guild Shop
Toronto, Ontario

August 1989                                                     
Art Inuit: la Sculpture des Esquimaux du Canada
Presented by l’Iglou Art Esquimau, Douai
At Chapelle de la Visitation,Thonon
Thonon, France

October – December 1989                                
Baffin Images
Orca Aart
Chicago, Illinois, U.S.A.

January 1990                                                    
Art Inuit: la Sculpture des Esquimaux du Canada
Presented by l’Iglou Art Esquimau, Douai
At Centre d’Action Culturelle du Bassin
Houllier, Lorrain
Saint Avold, France

March 1990                                                      
Art Inuit: la Sculpture des Esquimaux du Canada
Presented by l’Iglou Art Esquimau, Douai
At Maison Falleur
Cambrai, France

April 1990                                                        
Art Inuit: la Sculpture des Esquimaux du Canada
Presented by l’Iglou Art Esquimau, Douai
At Palais de’Europe
Le Touquet, France

June – July 1990                                              
Small Sculptures from across the Canadian Arctic
Feheley Fine Arts
Toronto, Ontario

December 1990                                                
New Miniature Sculpture
Gallery Phillip
Don Mills, Ontario

February 1991                                                  
Animals of the Arctic
Arctic Inuit Art
Richmond, Virginia, U.S.A.

April – May 1991                                              
Inuit Master Carvers
Show Goose Associates
Seattle, Washington, U.S.A.

November – December 1991                             
Second Generation Cape Dorset Carvers
Albers Gallery
San Francisco, California, U.S.A.
(illustrated brochure)

January – March 1992                                       
Images of Influence: Contemporary Inuit Art
Surrey Art Gallery
Surrey, British Columbia

February – August 1992                                    
Inuit Art on the Mezzanine: New Acquisitions
Winnipeg Art Gallery
Winnipeg, Manitoba
(illustrated brochure)

April – May 1992                                              
Two Young Carvers from Cape Dorset: Toonoo Sharky and Qiatsuq Shaa
The Isaacs/Innuit Gallery
Toronto, Ontario
(illustrated brochure)

October – November 1992                                
Arctic Ice: Sculptures in Marble by the Artists of Cape Dorset, N.W.T.
Marion Scott Gallery
Vancouver, British Columbia
(illustrated catalogue)

November – December 1992                             
Inuit Sculpture – New Acquisitions
Pucker Gallery
Boston, Massachusetts, U.S.A.
(illustrated brochure)

November – December 1992                             
Sculpture Inuit
Canadian Guild of Crafts Quebec
Montreal, Quebec

March – April 1993                                            
The Theme of Transformation in Inuit Sculpture
The Isaacs/Innuit Gallery
Toronto, Ontario

June – July 1993                                              
The Next Generation – Inuit Sculpture
Gallery Indigena
Stratford, Ontario

October – November 1993                                
Sculpture and Graphics from Cape Dorset
Art Space Gallery
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, U.S.A.

November – December 1993                             
The Treasured Monument
Marion Scott Gallery
Vancouver, British Columbia
(illustrated catalogue)

November – December 1993                             
Inuit Sculpture
Canadian Guild of Crafts Quebec
Montreal, Quebec

January 1994                                                    
Shamans and Transformations
Albers Gallery
San Francisco, California, U.S.A.

October 1994                                                   
Sculpture of the Inuit: Major Works by the Masters of Stone
Maslak McLeod Canadian Art
Santa Fe, New Mexico, U.S.A.

April – June 1995                                              
The Birds of Cape Dorset: A collection of sculpture by 32 Cape Dorset Carvers
Albers Gallery
San Francisco, California, U.S.A.
(illustrated brochure)

May – September 1995                                     
Keeping Our Stories Alive: An Exhibition of the Art and Crafts from the Dene and Inuit of Canada
Institute of American Indian Arts Museum
Santa Fe, New Mexico, U.S.A.
(illustrated catalogue)

July 1995                                                         
Sunakutagnuvalautut: Things from the Past
Orca Aart Gallery
Chicago, Illinois, U.S.A.
(illustrated brochure)

November – December 1995                             
Miniaturen
Inuit Galerie
Mannheim, Germany
(brochure)

March – April 1996                                            
Major/Minor
Marion Scott Gallery
Vancouver, British Columbia

November 1996                                                
Small Sculptures by Great Artists V
Feheley Fine Arts
Toronto, Ontario

November – December 1996                             
New Visions
Spirit Wrestler Gallery
Vancouver, British Columbia
(illustrated catalogue)

November – December 1996                             
Sculpture Inuit
Canadian Guild of Crafts Quebec
Montreal, Quebec
(brochure)

January 1997                                                    
Transitions: Contemporary Canadian Indian and Inuit Art
Presented by Indian Affairs and Northern Development and Foreign Affairs and International Trade Canada
Paris, France
(tour)
(illustrated catalogue)

February – April 1997                                        
Stone & Bone
The Inuit Master Carvers of the Canadian Arctic
The North West Company
Held at the Sun Valley Center for the Arts and Humanities
Ketchum, Idaho, U.S.A.

March – April 1997                                            
Major/Minor
Marion Scott Gallery
Vancouver, British Columbia

March – April 1997                                            
itinraire inuit
Rencontrer un peuple travers son art
Held at the Unesco Headquarters
Sponsored by Association Inukshuk L’homme debo
Paris, France
(catalogue)

May 1997                                                         
Nunavut/Nunavik: Sculpture in the Time of Change
Spirit Wrestler Gallery
Vancouver, British Columbia
(illustrated catalogue)

May 1997                                                         
Three Younger Masters: Tuck Nuna, Turaq Ragee and Toonoo Sharky
Loondance Gallery/Galerie L’envol Du Huart
Mont-Tremblant, Quebec

May – September 1998                                     
Fishing, Hunting and Wildlife
By Cape Dorset Inuit Artists
River Gallery
Fergus, Ontario

November 1998                                                
Sculpture from the Canadian Arctic
Feheley Fine Arts
Toronto, Ontario

October 1999                                                   
Horizons
Inuit Gallery of Vancouver
Vancouver, British Columbia
(illustrated catalogue)

October – November 1999                               
  Toonoo Sharky: Facing Dorset
Exhibition by John Reeves  (Photographer)
Feheley Fine Arts
Toronto, Ontario
(illustrated brochure)

June – July 2000                                              
Die Kunst aus der Arktis
Exhibition title: Art in Stone
Canadian Arctic Gallery (Grunder)
Hammerstrasse 50, Basel, Switzerland
(illustrated catalogue)

November, 2000                                               
Small Sculptures by Great Artists
Feheley Fine Arts
Toronto, Ontario

November, 2001                                               
Small Sculptures by Great Artists (November 2001)
Feheley Fine Arts
Toronto, Ontario

September – October 2002                               
Imagination
Canadian Arctic Gallery
Grunder
Basel, Schweiz, Switerland

October 2003                                                   
Modern Inuit: Toonoo Sharky, Napatchie Sharky
Inuit Gallery of Vancouver
Vancouver, British Columbia

Spring 2005                                                     
Cape Dorset Sculpture
Spirit Wrestler Gallery
Vancouver, British Columbia
(illustrated catalogue)

2006                                                                
Rhythms in Motion
Galerie d’art Vincent
Ottawa, Ontario
(illustrated catalogue)

December 2005 – January 2006                         
Small Sculptures by Great Artists
Feheley Fine Arts
Toronto, Ontario

January – May 2006                                          
In the Shadow of the Sun: Sami and Inuit Art
Art Gallery of Hamilton
Hamilton, Ontario

July – September 2006                                     
Out of the Ordinary – Cape Dorset Sculpture
Gallery Indigena
Stratford, Ontario

2006                                                                
Mini-Masterworks
Spirit Wrestler Gallery
Vancouver, British Columbia
(illustrated catalogue)

October 2006                                                  
  Pudlalik Shaa and Toonoo Sharky: Sculpture
The Albers Gallery
San Francisco, California, U.S.A.

November – December 2006                             
Arctic Miniatures
The Albers Gallery
San Francisco, California, U.S.A.

December 2006 – January 2007                         
Small Sculpture by Great Artists
Feheley Fine Arts
Toronto, Ontario

July – August 2007                                           
Timmiat: Inuit Sculpture of Birds
Marion Scott Gallery
Vancouver, British Columbia

April – May, 2008                                             
Arctic Wind – An Expression of Naturalism
Coastal Peoples Fine Arts Gallery
Vancouver, British Columbia

Oct. – Nov, 2008                                              
Shaman, Sedna and Spirits
Spirit Wrestler Gallery
Vancouver, British Columbia
(illustrated catalogue)

October, 2008                                                  
Transfigurations
Inuit Gallery of Vancouver
Vancouver, British Columbia

September – October, 2009                              
Power and Passion
Canadian Arctic Gallery
Basel, Switzerland

October – November, 2009                               
Mini Masterworks 3
Spirit Wrestler Gallery
Vancouver, British Columbia
(illustrated catalogue)

October, 2009 – January, 2010                          
Nunannguaq: In the Likeness of the Earth
McMichael Canadian Art Collection
Kleinburg, Ontario        

December, 2009                                               
Small Sculptures by Great Artists
Feheley Fine Arts
Toronto, Ontario
(illustrated brochure)

October, 2010                                                 
Arctic Wind III: An Expression of Survival
Coastal Peoples Gallery
Vancouver, British Columbia
(illustrated brochure)

January – February 2011                                   
20 Great Sculptures
Feheley Fine Arts
Toronto, Ontario

January – February, 2011                                  
Small Treasures 2011
Inuit Gallery of Vancouver
Vancouver, British Columbia

April, 2011                                                       
Flight Across the Tundra
Balzac Fine Arts
Toronto, Ontario

April 2011                                                        
Continuum
Inuit Gallery of Vancouver
Vancouver, British Columbia

September, 2011                                              
Fall Migration:
A Selection of Birds in Sculpture, Prints and Drawings
Feheley Fine Arts
Toronto, Ontario

November, 2011                                               
Sharky Family
Kulik Art Inuit
Quebec City, Quebec

SOLO EXHIBITIONS:

February, 2010                                                 
Toonoo Sharky Sculptures
Inuit Gallery of Vancouver
Vancouver, British Columbia

November – December 2011                             
Toonoo Sharky – Transformations
Canadian Arctic Gallery
Basel, Switzerland                                

COLLECTIONS:

Musee d’art Inuit Brousseau, Quebec City, Quebec
Museum of Anthropology, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, British Columbia
Winnipeg Art Gallery, Winnipeg, Manitoba

HONOURS, ACHIEVEMENTS AND EVENTS:

1991     Attended Qatuujiqatgit Sanaguatit-Contemporary Carving/Sculpting Session organized by the Inuit Artists’ College at the Ottawa School of Art in April/May.

1994     Travelled to Coral Gables, Florida, U.S.A., to participate in the International Festival of Craft Arts, winning first prize for sculpture.

SELECTED REFERENCES:

Hessel, Ingo
ARCTIC SPIRIT: Inuit Art from the Albrecht Collection at the Heard Museum, Heard Museum/Douglas & McIntyre, 2006.

Institute of American Indian Arts Museum
KEEPING OUR STORIES ALIVE: An Exhibition of the Art and Crafts from the Dene and Inuit
of Canada. Santa Fe, New Mexico, U.S.A.: Institute of American Native Arts Museum,1995.

Inuit Galerie
INUIT MINIATUREN. Mannheim, Germany: Inuit Galerie,1990.

Inuit Galerie
TOONOO SHARKY. Mannheim, Germany: Inuit Galerie, 1991.

Marion Scott Gallery
ARCTIC ICE: SCULPTURES IN MARBLE BY THE ARTISTS OF CAPE DORSET, NORTHWEST TERRITORIES. Vancouver, B.C.: Marion Scott Gallery, 1992.
Marion Scott Gallery
THE TREASURED MONUMENT: An Exhibition of Small-Scale Inuit Sculpture. Vancouver, B.C.: Marion Scott Gallery, 1993.

Mitchell, Marybelle
SEVEN ARTISTS IN OTTAWA. Inuit Art Quarterly, 6(3), Summer 1991: pp. 6 – 17.