Remembering Inuvialuk artist Floyd Kuptana, whose dark vision brought important issues to light

As the name suggests, Northern Wild Carrots are one of the most cold tolerant varieties available, coping with winter weather down to -10C when grown on lighter soils. The rich orange, cylindrical roots can be lifted late in the season or even over wintered in free draining conditions.

Foods from the natural environment which became included into the cultural food use patterns of a group of Indigenous People are known as indigenous foods. There is a great diversity of cultural ecosystems that sustained Canada's Indigenous Peoples throughout history, and hence, there is a great variety of indigenous foods that are part of our collective human knowledge.

The documented medicinal use of wild carrot seeds can be traced back to classical times, where the Roman Encyclopaedist Aulus Cornelius Celsus (25 BC – 50 AD), mentioned the use of wild carrot seeds in his work ‘De medicina’, written almost 2000 years ago.

Many of the medicinal claims for the wild carrot point to its use in supporting the elimination system, stimulating the flow of urine, and to the removal of waste products by the kidneys. The seeds are anti-lithic, helping to prevent or clear out sand and gravel from the kidneys, and so are also useful in cases of gout. Like other plants in the carrot family, the seeds are also carminative, helping calm and settle the stomach.

Floyd Kuptana occasionally believed he was possessd by spirits, supernatural beings. In particular the demon Mahaha. This extremely rare, one of a kind, self portrait reflects the image of the demon.....how the artist , at times, pictured himself.

Supernatural beings accompany many Inuit myths, including: Mahaha, a demon that terrorizes the Arctic and tickles its victims to death; Ijiraat, shapeshifters that may change into any arctic animal but may not disguise their red eyes; Taqriaqsuit, shadow people who are rarely seen but often heard; Qallupilluk (or Qalupalik, see below), scaly, human-like creatures that snatch children into the sea; Inupasugjuk, giants who capture humans; and Tuniit, who are seen as simple-minded but extremely strong ancestors of the Inuit.

The Inuit believed that all things have a form of spirit or soul (in Inuktitut: anirniq meaning "breath"; plural anirniit), just like humans. These spirits are held to persist after death—a common belief present in most human societies.

Quviasukvik is the first day of the year according to the Inuit. The festival of the New Year is celebrated by the Inuit, Yupik, Aleut, Chukchi and the Iñupiat.The feast originally derives from traditional Inuit religion but in modern times, it has Christian influences.

The Quviasukvik festival starts on Christmas Eve and ends on January 7. This festival celebrates the coming of the new year and the sea goddess, Sedna and the transferring of spirits for good luck in the new year. During these days, many traditional customs are displayed. Due to Christian influences, Christmas was considered a new year to the Inuit.

The Northern Inuit Dog, along with its offshoot breed lines the Tamaskan dog, the British Timber dog and the Utonagan, is a breed of dog developed from a 1980s breeding project in the United Kingdom with the objective of producing a dog breed that resembles wolves.

Northern Inuit Dogs descend from dogs of unknown breed ancestry imported from North America in the 1980s that were crossed with Alaskan Malamutes, German Shepherds, Siberian Huskies and possibly Samoyeds; the intention of the breeding project was to create a dog of wolf-like appearance that could be kept as a companion dog and that could also be trained for other tasks.

An Amarok,  is a gigantic wolf in Inuit religion,

In one tale, a persecuted and physically stunted boy seeks to increase his strength. When he calls out to the lord of strength, an Amarok appears and wrestles him to the ground with its tail. This causes a number of small bones to fall from the boy's body. The Amarok tells the boy that the bones had prevented his growth; he instructs the boy to return daily in order to develop his strength. After several days of wrestling with the amarok, the boy is strong enough to overcome three large bears, thus gaining him the esteem of his village.

On Monday, May 24th, 2021, Floyd Kuptana completed this special painting. The Artist died the very next day, on May 25th from a Heart Attack. The artist had envisioned two headed wolves throughout his artistic career and it is only fitting that the subject matter in his last painting was that of the animal he frequently envisioned. A special person who passed away too soon!

This special Soapstone Scultpure was featured on the Cover of Inuit Art Quarterly in the Spring of 2008. It is arguably, Floyd Kuptana's most well known sculpture.

"Floyd's Famous Bear Head is strategically placed on the top of an Inukshuk" —a polar bear in Inuktitut— is formidable, resilient and highly intelligent. But it can also be dangerous and unpredictable. Inuit have great respect for nanuq. Polar bears are important culturally and economically and represent a source of traditional food—or country food—for Inuit. Inukshuk is a  structure of rough stones stacked in the form of a human figure, traditionally used by Inuit people as a landmark or a commemorative  sign.

A bird shaman is a type of spiritual healer or intermediary in various indigenous cultures who works with the power and symbolism of birds. They are believed to communicate with spirit birds, use bird totems and feathers for healing, and some shamans may even experience out-of-body journeys where they transform into or are accompanied by birds to travel to the spirit world. 

The Moon-Man is a significant figure in Inuit mythology, where a shaman visits his house on the moon and witnesses him and the Sun-Woman dancing. Modern Inuit art also features themes of moon-related journeys and shamanic connections to the moon, Floyd Kuptan's Dancing Bear represent the bear's spirit moving between the earth and the moon. 

An inukshuk used for hunting grounds by the Inuit served as a physical marker and signal to identify good locations for hunting, acting as a point of reference and a tool to help hunters and others survive in the harsh Arctic environment. These stone structures, which also guided travellers and warned of danger, were a vital part of Inuit culture and survival, with different types of inukshuk serving various specific functions. 

A Shaman transformation mask is used in the rituals of Indigenous peoples of the Pacific Northwest and Alaska, particularly in shamanic traditions, to symbolize the wearer's spiritual journey and transition between the natural and spirit worlds.