Queen Elizabeth II (1926-2022)

This stylised Inuit stone and whalebone sculpture depicts Queen Elizabeth II. It was made by Osuitok Ipeelee (1923–2005) (RCA), one of the foremost Inuit sculptors of the twentieth century. Ipeelee was unsure how to depict the queen’s shoes, so he decided to depict her with bare feet under her long dress. 

Ipeelee was born into a family of cavers on Baffin Island and quickly earned a reputation for fine stone carving. He attracted the attention of James Houston, who helped bring Inuit handicrafts to an international audience in the mid-twentieth century. As one of Houston's earliest collaborators, Ipeelee was the first to produce Inuit prints in Cape Dorset. His most notable commissions included the official mace for the Council of the Northwest Territories in 1955. This piece was created for presentation during Queen Elizabeth II’s 1959 tour of Canada.