qiaqsutuq

June 16-18, 2026

Umeå, Sweden

Arctic Arts Summit 2026

In Inuktitut, qiaqsutuq is the sound of the whistling wind and the sound of crying. In this immersive, virtual reality experience based on a multimedia installation by artists from across Inuit Nunaat (from their Inuit homelands in Alaska, Canada and Greenland) qiaqsutuq is critically imagined as a lament for nuna, tariuq, and sila, a chorus of its Arctic inhabitants from the land, sea and sky. As glaciers melt, permafrost warms, floods abound and smoke billows north from forest fires, weather becomes unpredictable, and thus dangerous, in the Arctic. Featuring the distinct perspectives on the impacts of climate change by Iguttaq (Bee Woman), Tuktu (Caribou), Nanuq (Polar Bear), Tulugak (Raven) and Natchik (Seal), these harbingers warn of the fast approaching consequences of our collective inaction on the precious life throughout Inuit Nunaat. 

  • Jamesie Fournier (Nunavummiut) 

    Erin Ggaadimits Ivalu Gingrich (Koyukon Denaa and Iñupiaq / Anchorage) 

    Coco Lynge (Kalaaleq Inuk) 

    Malayah Maloney  (Nunavummiut) 

    Taqralik Partridge (Nunavimmiut) 

  • Heather Igloliorte (Nunatsiavummiut) 

    Alysa Procida

    Carla Taunton

qiaqsutuq was first created as a mixed-media installation at an artist incubator at NSCAD University, produced by Inuit Futures and the Inuit Art Foundation in 2023 in Kjipuktuk/ Halifax, NS, Canada. It premiered at Nocturne Night Festival in 2023, and has been installed in Victoria, BC, Canada before being turned into a virtual reality experience in 2026 by MX50. 

The artists and curators are grateful for coordination support and production assistance from Aghalingiak (Nunavummit), Matthew Brulotte, Aningaaq Rosing Carlsen (Kalaaleq Inuk), Julie Grenier (Nunavimmiuk), Jordan Hill (T’Sou-ke Nation), Laura Hodgins, Yi Fan Liu,  Dr. Isla Myers-Smith, Danielle Aimée Miles, Holliss Roberts, Nathan Ryan (Ta’an Kwächän/Kwanlin Dün First Nations), Taqramiut Nipingat Inc,  Dominic Thibault and Nils Ailo Utsi (Sámi). 

qiaqsutuq at Nocturne festival in 2023

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A River Runs Beneath