Axangayu (Agjangajuk) Shaa
Native American (Inuit), born Canada, 1937 - 2019Bear With Walrus, n.d.
Not on view
Soapstone
Dimensions15 × 17 in. (38.1 × 43.2 cm)
Gift of Mrs. Durfee Day, Mr. and Mrs. Charles Libs, Mr. and Mrs. James F. Smith, Mrs. S. S. Stewart Jr., 1971.11
The walrus and the polar bear are two of the largest and most important animas in the Arctic regions of Canada and two fo the most frequently depicted animals in Inuit art. Here the artist has carved a walrus attacking a polar bear. You can see how the artist arranged the composition to fit into the shape of the uncarved stone. Both the walrus and the polar bear are hunted for food, hides, and tusks, and no part of the animal is wasted. The polar bear also has spiritual significance to the Inuit. They believe that after death, they return as an animal, and to be reincarnated as a polar bear is the highest reward.
