Ulukhaktok artist Mary Jane Nigiyok has always been fascinated by the aesthetic qualities of fish skin, and she noticed people she encountered at the recent CRAFTED craft show in Winnipeg had a similar reaction.
“When people were stopping by my table, I told them the products are made from Arctic char fish skin or vertebrae, and they were fascinated,” Nigiyok said soon after she arrived home. “They were surprised that something like that could be made with fish skin.”
Nigiyok attended CRAFTED, which ran from Nov. 3-5 at the Winnipeg Art Gallery, with 11 other NWT artists. NWT Arts, a program is operated by the GNWT’s Department of Industry Tourism and Investment, supported the group in getting to their destination.
Participants also received training to ensure they were prepared for the popular event.
“This is not just a community craft fair anymore,” said Johanna Tiemessen, the department’s manager of arts and traditional economies. “You have to stand out at your table. Do you have signage? Do you have business cards? Do you have artist cards? We help them all of that.”
“We want to help them to be successful.”
Nigiyok is grateful to have had the experience.
“I so enjoyed that trip,” she said. “I enjoyed meeting a lot of people, meeting other artists from the NWT, meeting the organizers.
“I want to say thank you to the NWT Arts program, because without them I wouldn’t have been able to attend the show.”
Nigiyok has been crafting since she was a girl, when she used to work on projects with her mother. Over the years, she has experimented with several mediums. She began focusing on fish skin in 2019, after taking an online class taught by an artist in Alaska.
She finds making art “soothing,” she said, and now works on her crafts with her daughter and granddaughters.
“It clears my mind from the everyday hustle and bustle,” she said. “I’ve also taught my daughter and my oldest granddaughter and my second oldest granddaughter how to do it.
“It brings me back to growing up and being at our camp in the summer. I remember seeing the fish skin and how pretty it was. I remember watching my mum work with the fish.”
After a successful few days of sales at crafted, Nigiyok now plans to replenish her inventory for several smaller shows around the NWT.
She also hopes to attend the 2024 edition of CRAFTED, the dates of which have not yet been announced.
“I do plan on applying again,” she said.
NWT Arts has taken artists to CRAFTED for the last three years.
According to Tiemessen, it is common for participants to attend more than once.
“Artists of the Northwest Territories benefit so much from being there in-person,” she said. “They talk to other artists, they are inspired to create new work, they find new audiences, and the best part is having them directly tell their story and share their culture.”