Tye Adla
(1936–)
(–1990)
Tye Adla
1936–1990
Tye Adla (1936-1990) was an Inuit sculptor and graphic artist in Kinngait (Cape Dorset), Nunavut. Her work was focused on representations of animals, and she often contributed work to the Cape Dorset Annual Print Collection between 1966 and 1975.
After recovering from tuberculosis in the early 1960s, Tye began her exploration of drawing. Most of her illustrations and carvings were focused on animal imagery and followed a style similar to that of her husband, sculptor Kalai Adla.
Tye’s siblings Iyola Kingwatsiak, Mikigak Kingwatsiak, and Keeleemeeoomee Samualie were artists. Further, her great-grandchildren Etidloie, Ashevak, and the late Mappulak Adla are all carvers in the Kinngait community.
Her work has been featured in many exhibitions of Inuit art, as well as the Cape Dorset Annual Print Collection. Her work can be found in a number of permanent collections, including at the Canadian Museum of History, Gatineau, the Winnipeg Art Gallery, the McMichael Canadian Art Collection, Vaughan, and the Museum of Anthropology, Vancouver, among others.