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Image Not Available for Toonoo Sharky (ᑐᓄ ᓴᑭ)
Toonoo Sharky (ᑐᓄ ᓴᑭ)
Image Not Available for Toonoo Sharky (ᑐᓄ ᓴᑭ)

Toonoo Sharky (ᑐᓄ ᓴᑭ)

Inuit, born 1970
SchoolKinngait (Cape Dorset)
Biography"I was influenced by my grandfather Kopapik Ragee, and also by Shorty Killiktee. The first carving I did was at the age of ten. I think it was a bird or a seal.” Toonoo has been carving ever since and it has been his only source of income. He likes to carve in serpentine and marble stone. “I like the colours and also the textures of both stones. When I’m starting on a piece of stone, I like to slowly work on the piece until the shape starts forming into a shape I can recognize. Sometimes, I just go by the shape of the stone. My favourite subjects are bird figures with human faces

- Toonoo Sharky

Toonoo is the son of the late carver, Josephee Sharky and Ragee Killiktee. “My younger brothers, Napachie and Alasua are also carving”, says Toonoo. He lives with Mary Saila, and they have an adopted child. Toonoo’s favourite pastimes are carving, hunting, watching television and spending time with his family.

https://www.dorsetfinearts.com/toonoo-sharky


"Toonoo’s parents, Josephee Sharky and Ragee Killiktee, were both carvers, though he credits his grandfather Kuppapik Ragee and his uncle Shorty Killiktee as influences. Toonoo started carving at ten, began to get serious at thirteen and first exhibited when he was just seventeen. He is regarded as one of the most exciting young carvers to emerge in the Arctic. His themes include fanciful and quite dramatic treatments of wildlife, particularly birds, and transformational works that are both powerful and humorous. His work is widely shown, and he was elected to the Royal Canadian Academy in 2003."

http://www.spiritwrestler.com/catalog/index.php?artists_id=119
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