Artcirq is a collective of Inuit circus performers based in Igloolik, Nunavut, Canada. The circus began in 1998, co-founded by Igloolik Isuma Productions, a film production company, and Guillaume Saladin, a Montreal acrobat, with financial support from Cirque Éloize in Montreal. It was started as a way of engaging young people in meaningful activity in Igloolik, where many youth drop out of school and there is a high rate of suicide, particularly among young men.[1] Artcirq is a nontraditional circus, blending techniques of modern circus arts such as juggling and acrobatics with elements of Inuit culture including throat singing and drum dancing.
Artcirq's members have traveled around the world, performing in Timbuktu, Mali, Mexico, Greece, and France, among other locations. In February, 2010, six members of Artcirq will be among an ensemble of Canadian Arctic performers representing Nunavut at the 2010 Olympic Winter Games in Vancouver, British Columbia. Artcirq has released its own music CD called Artcirq Jam.