Cape Dorset

Cape Dorset
ᑭᙵᐃᑦ
Kinngait
—  Hamlet  —
Part of the village with characteristic Kinngait hill,
May 1997
Nickname(s): Capital of Inuit Art
Cape Dorset
Coordinates:
Country  Canada
Territory  Nunavut
Region Qikiqtaaluk
Electoral district South Baffin
Hudson's Bay Company 1913
Government[1][2]
 • Type Hamlet
 • Mayor Cary Merritt
 • MLAs Fred Schell
Area[3]
 • Total 9.74 km2 (3.8 sq mi)
Elevation[4] 50 m (164 ft)
Highest elevation 243 m (797 ft)
Lowest elevation 0 m (0 ft)
Population (2006)[3]
 • Total 1,236
 • Density 126.9/km2 (328.7/sq mi)
Time zone EST (UTC−5)
 • Summer (DST) EDT (UTC−4)
Postal code X0A 0C0
Area code(s) 867
Website www.capedorset.ca

Cape Dorset (Inuktitut: Kinngait; Syllabics: ᑭᙵᐃᑦ) is an Inuit hamlet located on Dorset Island[5] near Foxe Peninsula at the southern tip of Baffin Island in the Qikiqtaaluk Region of Nunavut, Canada. The Inuktitut name of the village means "high mountains".[6]

Contents

History

Cape Dorset is where the remains of the Thule (Tuniit, Dorset Culture) were discovered, that lived between 1000B.C and 1100 A.D.. Cape Dorset was named by Captain Luke Fox after Edward Sackville, 4th Earl of Dorset on September 24, 1631. The Inuit originally called the inlet Sikusiilaq before it was named Cape Dorset, after the area of sea ocean nearby that remains ice free all winter. Hudson Bay Company started their trading post in 1913, where they traded furs and skins for supplies like tobacco, ammunition, flour, gas, tea and sugar. Since the 1950s, Cape Dorset, which calls itself the "Capital of Inuit Art" has been a centre for drawing, printmaking, and carving. Even today, printmaking and carving are the community's main economic activities. Each year, Kinngait Studios issues an annual print collection. Cape Dorset has been hailed as the most artistic community in Canada, with some 22% of the labour force employed in the arts.[7] In 1957, James Houston, European-Canadian created a graphic arts workshop in Cape Dorset.[8]:49 Houston collected drawings from community artists and encouraged local Inuit stone carvers to apply their skills to stone-block printing. The print program was modeled after Japanese ukiyo-e workshops. Other cooperative print shops were also established in nearby communities, but the Cape Dorset workshop has remained the most successful. They have experimented with etching, engraving, lithography, and silkscreen, and produce annual catalogs advertising the limited edition prints.[8]:49

Between the years of 1959 and 1974, Cape Dorset artists produced more than 48,000 prints. Well-known artists of Cape Dorset include Nuna Parr; Pudlo Pudlat; and Kenojuak Ashevak. Parr's carvings are internationally recognized and his work is exhibited in the National Gallery of Canada. Ashevak's drawings of owls have appeared on Canadian stamps as well as a Canadian quarter. Inuit photographer and author Peter Pitseolak spent several years of his life living in Cape Dorset.

Demographics

As of the 2006 census, the population was 1,236 an increase of 7.7% from the 2001 census.[3] The area is serviced by the Cape Dorset Airport.

Tourism

Spanning both Dorset Island and Mallik Island, Mallikjuaq Territorial Park is notable for its Thule culture, Dorset culture, and Inuit archaeological sites. The park is reachable by foot from Cape Dorset at low tide, or by boat.[9] There is a cairn in memory of the ship, RMS Nascopie, that hit rock and sank in 1947. It was a supply ship to the arctic. Although the cargo was lost, the passengers and crew were saved. There are also outfitters that offer tours like dogsledding, camping and hiking to parks.

Transportation

Roads in Cape Dorset provide access within town. Cape Dorset Airport is a small airstrip and provides connection beyond Cape Dorset (to Iqaluit Airport) and when ships cannot travel in the Hudson Strait due to ice.

Image gallery

Climate

Climate data for Cape Dorset Airport
Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Year
Humidex -1.4 -1.6 0.3 3.9 10.4 17.3 25.0 21.6 12.7 6.5 3.4 -1.1 21.6
Record high °C (°F) −1.4
(29.5)
−1.5
(29.3)
0.8
(33.4)
5.6
(42.1)
10.9
(51.6)
17.9
(64.2)
25.0
(77.0)
21.9
(71.4)
18.1
(64.6)
7.2
(45.0)
3.4
(38.1)
−0.8
(30.6)
25.0
(77.0)
Average high °C (°F) −21.7
(−7.1)
−22.7
(−8.9)
−17.9
(−0.2)
−10.3
(13.5)
−2.7
(27.1)
5.1
(41.2)
11.2
(52.2)
8.8
(47.8)
3.6
(38.5)
−1.8
(28.8)
−8.7
(16.3)
−16.9
(1.6)
−6.2
(20.8)
Daily mean °C (°F) −25
(−13.0)
−26
(−14.8)
−21.6
(−6.9)
−14.1
(6.6)
−5.5
(22.1)
2.3
(36.1)
7.4
(45.3)
5.7
(42.3)
1.5
(34.7)
−3.9
(25.0)
−11.7
(10.9)
−20.2
(−4.4)
−9.3
(15.3)
Average low °C (°F) −28.3
(−18.9)
−29.2
(−20.6)
−25.1
(−13.2)
−18
(−0.4)
−8.3
(17.1)
−0.6
(30.9)
3.5
(38.3)
2.5
(36.5)
−0.7
(30.7)
−5.9
(21.4)
−14.8
(5.4)
−23.4
(−10.1)
−12.4
(9.7)
Record low °C (°F) −38.9
(−38.0)
−40.6
(−41.1)
−42.2
(−44.0)
−32.8
(−27.0)
−19.6
(−3.3)
−9.3
(15.3)
−3.4
(25.9)
−4.6
(23.7)
−8.3
(17.1)
−23.9
(−11.0)
−30.6
(−23.1)
−42.8
(−45.0)
−42.8
(−45.0)
Wind chill −54.5 −58.1 −53 −44.6 −29.3 −14.6 −7.6 −8.7 −14.7 −39.7 −39.7 −51.4 −58.1
Precipitation mm (inches) 22.3
(0.878)
17.3
(0.681)
21.8
(0.858)
30.1
(1.185)
31.1
(1.224)
23.7
(0.933)
34.4
(1.354)
56.0
(2.205)
46.7
(1.839)
44.3
(1.744)
42.4
(1.669)
33.1
(1.303)
403.0
(15.866)
Rainfall mm (inches) 0.0
(0)
0.0
(0)
0.0
(0)
0.1
(0.004)
3.1
(0.122)
14.7
(0.579)
34.4
(1.354)
54.7
(2.154)
32.5
(1.28)
4.3
(0.169)
0.0
(0)
0.0
(0)
143.9
(5.665)
Snowfall cm (inches) 25.5
(10.04)
20.4
(8.03)
25.7
(10.12)
34.6
(13.62)
30.7
(12.09)
9.3
(3.66)
0.4
(0.16)
1.4
(0.55)
14.1
(5.55)
42.8
(16.85)
50.2
(19.76)
41.5
(16.34)
296.4
(116.69)
Avg. precipitation days 16.7 14.2 16.0 14.6 16.7 10.2 11.5 12.8 15.3 19.6 20.1 19.5 187.0
Avg. rainy days 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.25 1.8 6.1 11.6 12.6 10.1 2.2 0.05 0.05 44.7
Avg. snowy days 16.7 14.2 16.3 14.5 15.8 5.1 0.2 0.6 7.6 18.7 20.1 19.5 149.0
Source: 1971-2000 Environment Canada[10]

See also

References

  1. ^ Hamlets elect new councils
  2. ^ Election Results - 2008 General Election
  3. ^ a b c 2006 census
  4. ^ Elevation at airport. Canada Flight Supplement. Effective 0901Z 15 December 2011 to 0901Z 9 February 2012
  5. ^ Government of Nunavut - Communities
  6. ^ Cape Dorset history
  7. ^ Cape Dorset named most 'artistic' municipality from the CBC
  8. ^ a b Hessel, Ingo. Arctic Spirit: Inuit Art from the Albrecht Collection at the Heard Museum. Phoenix: Heard Museum, 2006. ISBN 978-1-555365-189-5.
  9. ^ "Features". nunavutparks.com. http://www.nunavutparks.com/english/parks-special-places/mallikjuaq-territorial-park/features.html. 
  10. ^ Environment CanadaCanadian Climate Normals 1971–2000. Retrieved 22 June 2011.

Further reading

  • Dorais, Louis-Jacques. Kinngaqmiut Uqausingit = The Inuit Language in Cape Dorset N.W.T. = Le Parler Inuit De Cape Dorset T.N.O.. Quebec: Association Inuksiutiit katimajiit, Laboratoire d'anthro[ologie, Université Laval, 1975.
  • Leroux, Odette, Marion E. Jackson, and Minnie Aodla Freeman. Inuit Women Artists Voices from Cape Dorset. Vancouver: Douglas & McIntyre, 1994. ISBN 0295973897
  • Norton, Derek, and Nigel Reading. Cape Dorset Sculpture. Seattle: University of Washington Press, 2005. ISBN 0295984783
  • Nunavut Handbook, Iqaluit 2004 ISBN 0-9736754-0-3
  • Pitseolak, Peter, and Dorothy Eber. People from Our Side An Eskimo Life Story in Words and Photographs : an Inuit Record of Seekooseelak, the Land of the People of Cape Dorset, Baffin Island. Bloomington: Indiana University Press, 1975. ISBN 0253343348
  • Ryan, Leslie Boyd. Cape Dorset Prints, a Retrospective Fifty Years of Printmaking at the Kinngait Studios. San Francisco: Pomegranate, 2007. ISBN 9780764941917
  • SchoolNet Digital Collections (Canada). Cape Dorset Inuit art and Inuit cultural perspectives. Ottawa: Industry Canada, 2000.
  • Walk, Ansgar. Kenojuak - The Life Story of an Inuit Artist. Manotick: Penumbra Press, 1999. ISBN 0921254954

External links