Ken Kirkby: A Painter's Quest for Canada

U.S.A.: Libros Libertad, 2009. 1st Edition 3rd Printing. Soft cover. As New. 8vo - over 7¾ - 9¾" tall. Synopsis: When Ken Kirkby unveiled his painting, Isumataq in Parliament on March 28, 1992, he had to make do with a 25-foot model and the first four panels of the painting itself. The original, at 152' long and 12' high would not fit into the building. But even the model brought tears to the eyes of the 301 members of Parliament and senators gathered there. Isumataq is an Inuit word meaning, "An object in the presence of which wisdom might show itself" and refers to the manlike monuments of stone called Inuksuit that the Inuit have erected for generations to serve as travel guides and markers of good hunting and fishing. Kirkby's hope was that the enormous painting he had been working on for ten years would open people's eyes to the beauty of the north and to the plight of the Inuit in that far land. Kirkby describes Isumataq as "the portrait of the soul of a nation." In the speech he made to parliament that day, Kirkby said, "Isumataq is my tribute to Canadians. It is my homage to the Canadian Arctic and its peoples who inspired me to paint it. Isumataq is made of years of personal effort and millions of individual brush strokes?as Canada has been made of the efforts of millions of individuals. Isumataq is an invitation and it is a demand. Let's join each other and be worthy of this place."