Beauty in Our Lines

This work is part of a series of ink drawings on which multidisciplinary
Inuit artist Niap sewed traditional Inuit tattoos. Historically reserved for women, face and body tattooing (tunniq and kakiniq, respectively) marks and relates the different stages of an Inuit woman’s life. Banned for years when Inuit communities converted to Christianity, the practice gradually faded away. As a way of restoring visibility to this tradition and ensuring its survival through her art, Niap adorned this drawing of her grandmothers’ untouched skin with stitched tattoos that symbolize connection to family and community.