B.1993
Kablusiak is a multidisciplinary Inuvialuk artist and curator who uses Inuk ingenuity to create work in a variety of mediums — including lingerie, white flour, soapstone, permanent marker, bed sheets, felt, acrylic paint, and words. Their work explores dis/connections and family and community ties within the Inuit diaspora, as well as the impact of colonization on Inuit expressions of gender and sexuality, on health and wellbeing, and on daily life. Seeking to demystify Inuit art, Kablusiak also creates space for Inuit-led representations of Inuit cultures.
Kablusiak holds a BFA in Drawing from the Alberta University of the Arts in Mohkinstsis (Calgary). Awards (some but not all) include the 2020 Lieutenant Governor of Alberta Arts Award, the 2019 Sobey Art Award (shortlist) representing the Prairies and the North, the 2021 and 2023 (shortlist) Kenojuak Ashevak Memorial Award, the 2023 Lieutenant Governor of Alberta Arts Award, and most recently the winner of the prestigious 2023 Sobey Art Award.
Kablusiak’s recognition has extended the boundaries of the exhibition space, and their work has been collected widely; most notably the Indigenous Art Centre (CIRNAC), the Art Gallery of Alberta, the Alberta Foundation for the Arts, Walter Phillips Gallery (Banff Centre for Arts & Creativity), The Image Centre, Global Affairs Canada Visual Art Collection, Winnipeg Art Gallery/Quamajuq, and the Art Gallery of Ontario to name a few.
