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Activity 1, Tapestry of Life - Group Assignments 1-6

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Skin Clothing
Skin Footwear
Scrapers and Scraping Platforms
Stretching Frames
Ulus
Sewing Tools
ANSWERS

Activity 1, Tapestry of Life - Group Assignment 1 - Our Boots

Student Names: ________________________________________________________

Skin Clothing

Come up to me,
Come up to me.
I will gladly sew hoods
to your garments.
I will gladly set fine soles
to your kamiks.

Traditional song collected by Rasmussen, 1930
(Translation of a song collected from the Caribou Inuit
on the Fifth Thule Expedition by Knud Rasmussen, 1921-1924)

GROUP TASK:

Go to the Skin Clothing Section in the exhibition Our Boots - An Inuit Womans Art.

Read the page and summarize the information. Identify the parts of Mina Napartuks tapestry that relate to your topic. Prepare to present your findings to the class. Be sure to include the quote above in your presentation.

Activity 1, Tapestry of Life - Group Assignment 2 - Our Boots

Student Names: ________________________________________________________

Skin Footwear

Inuit women make kamiks and other traditional clothing which
enable us to thrive in Arctic environments. Caribou skins provide excellent
insulation, while seal skins protect us from wet conditions. We use combinations
of seal, caribou, and other skins to produce footwear that is suited for
many different weather conditions.

Sally Qimmiunaaq Webster, 1995

GROUP TASK:

Go to the Skin Footwear Section in the exhibition Our Boots - An Inuit Womans Art.

Activity 1, Tapestry of Life - Group Assignment 3 - Our Boots

Student Names: ________________________________________________________

Scrapers and Scraping Platforms

I bring [my scraping platform] with me when we go camping for the
summer so I can easily shave hair from seal skins. You have to make sure you
keep the board clean and flat so you wont accidentally slice through the skin.

Lydia Akumaliq, Arctic Bay, 1984

When I was little I started playing with scrapers and tools by practicing on skins.

Irene Quqshuun, 1986

GROUP TASK:

Go to the Scraper and Scraping Platforms Section in the exhibition Our Boots - An Inuit Womans Art.

Activity 1, Tapestry of Life - Group Assignment 4 - Our Boots

Student Names: ________________________________________________________

Stretching Frames

We prepare skins in different ways for different conditions.
We remove fat and dry them. Frames help us make the skins
smooth and free from wrinkles.

Jennie Lennie, Sarah Ovatuatia Philip and Sally Qimmiunaaq Webster

GROUP TASK:

Go to the Stretching Frames Section in the exhibition Our Boots - An Inuit Womans Art.

Activity 1, Tapestry of Life - Group Assignment 5 - Our Boots

Student Names: ________________________________________________________

Ulus

Every woman has her own tools made with her own design.
When an elder dies, her ulu is sometimes buried with her.

Ulayok Kaviok, 1986

GROUP TASK:

Go to the Ulus Section in the exhibition Our Boots - An Inuit Womans Art.

Activity 1, Tapestry of Life - Group Assignment 6 - Our Boots

Student Names: ________________________________________________________

Sewing Tools

Sinew is the strong tendon which connects muscle to bone. The best sinew
is found along the backbone of the large animals we hunt.
We separate the bundles of dried sinew into strands for sewing. When damp,
animal sinew swells up and stops water from leaking through
needle holes along kamik seams.

Elisapee Alooloo, 1984

GROUP TASK:

Go to the Sewing Tools Section in the exhibition Our Boots - An Inuit Womans Art.

Activity 1, Tapestry of Life - Group Assignments 1-6 - Our Boots - Answers

The main points the students should cover are:

Skin Clothing

Inuit animal skin clothing provides protection from the environment
Clothing is layered to allow temperature control
Women are the makers of clothing, from preparing the skins to sewing
Men's sewing skills were limited to mending

Skin Footwear

Inuit footwear is a combination of layers: stockings, slippers and boots
Water-resistant sealskin boot are used in warm or wet conditions
Caribou, a dense, warm fur, is used for cold conditions
Sealskin is porous, therefore permitting perspiration to escape and keeping feet dry and warm

Scrapers

Scrapers have a short, wide blade, usually attached to a handle
Blades were made from stone, slate, or bone
In the 18th and 19th century iron obtained through trade or shipwrecks was preferred
Scrapers are used to remove tissue and fat, to soften and to remove the fur from a skin

Stretching Frames

Scraped skins are dried on frames to make them more elastic
Once stretched and dried, it is softened by shaping the skin into a ball with the fur inside, and stamping on it repeatedly.
It is smoothed with a scraper to remove wrinkles
It is then rubbed and twisted until it is soft

Ulus

Ulus are the crescent shaped knives used by Inuit women
A woman would have many ulus that would be used for particular tasks like skinning, eating, and sewing
Men made ulus for their wives, often molding it to fit her hand perfectly
Women were sometimes buried with their ulus.

Sewing Tools

Sinew, taken from either side of the caribou spine, was used for thread
Sinew swells when wet, filling the holes made by the needle in the sewing process and making boots more waterproof
Traditionally needles were made from bones; steel needles were preferred once they became available