Eskimo Soapstone

Friday, a slug of Inuit soapstone sculptures walked in the door. Well, I guess they did not actually "walk"... more like lumbered...

Regardless, this has been an area of American Indian art that has been slowly growing on me. I used to not think much about these sculptures, but the more I see, the more intereresting they become. Carved in the round, the subjects vary from comical, to everyday arctic life scenes, to marine and avian wildlife. Even more interesting, the semingly "off balance" look of some carvings only supports the ablity of the artist to see design in a non-conventional shape. Even the older pieces have a contemporary but organic quality that I am really starting to enjoy.

By the way - these pictures are just a sampling... and I never claimed to be a photographer, as you are finding out...