York University
Art Collection Online

Toonoo (1920­–1969) was a sculptor born in a camp on south Qikiqtaaluk (Baffin Island), Nunavut, who later settled in Kinngait (Cape Dorset), Nunavut. Toonoo was a talented craftsman who spent much of his life living on the land. He handcrafted his own hunting and fishing tools alongside his art. In the 1950s Toonoo began carving and selling his sculptures to fur traders and James Houston, who was concurrently setting up an arts program in Kinngait.

Toonoo’s wife, Sheojuke Tonnoo, was also an artist who made drawings, prints, carvings, and clothing. Together they lived at Kangia, a traditional Inuit hunting camp, with their children. Their daughter Oviloo Tunnilie became an artist and has cited her father as being a major influence over her work; he is often depicted in her carvings. Toonoo died in a hunting accident in 1969.

Toonoo was one of the first Inuit artists to receive named recognition for his carvings, but as he did not sign his works, many of his carvings remain unidentified. His work has been included in exhibitions in Canada, the United States, and Europe, such as Eskimo Carvings: Coronation Exhibition at Gimpel Fils, London, UK, in 1953. Toonoo’s work is also held in the permanent collections at the National Gallery of Canada, Ottawa, the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, the Glenbow Museum, Calgary, and the Winnipeg Art Gallery, among others.