Legends and Stories Johnniebo Ashevak (1923-1972) Kinngait [Cape Dorset] Taleelayo with Sea Bird, 1965 Stonecut on paper Collection of the West Baffin Eskimo CoOperative Ltd., on loan to the McMichael Canadian Art Collection CDP.41.14.1 Jessie Oonark (1906-1985) Qamanittuaq [Baker Lake] Two Small Drawings, 1974 Stonecut on paper McMichael Canadian Art Collection, Gift of Judge and Mrs. Darrell Draper 1989.11.5 The legend of Sedna (Taleelayo, Nuliajuk), the Inuit spirit of the sea or sea goddess, is known throughout the Arctic. She is the most powerful being in Inuit mythology. She controls the animals and ensures good hunting for the Inuit. The shaman has the formidable task of trying to appease the Sedna during times of famine. The legend of the sea mother exists in various forms. One universal element to the story is her dramatic banishment from the world of the Inuit to the world of spirits. Sedna, a half human and half fish or whale spirit, is forced to live at the bottom of the sea. One interpretation of the legend features Sedna's second husband as a northern fulmar or "bird of the storm. Fulmars are haughty white birds and, like the raven, are carrion eaters and therefore spiritually dangerous. Following the death of Sedna's first dog-husband and after the departure of her dog-children in two separate groups, she meets a handsome man. This handsome man is in fact the fulmar in disguise. When they arrive at the fulmar's home he reveals his true identity. His short legs and lidless eyes repulse his new wife. Despite his earlier treachery Sedna's father, who killed her dog-husband, feels remorse and decides to rescue Sedna from the terrible fulmar. When the bird is away, father and daughter try to escape but are caught in a great wind created by the fulmar's strong wings. They are engulfed by huge waves. As they are about to capsize the old man throws his daughter into the water. Sedna grabs hold of his kayak and he hits her with his paddle. She does not let go. Defeated and afraid, he chops off her fingers and as they fall into the water they become all the animals of the sea. As a result of the fulmar's deception and unyielding anger Sedna sinks downward into her dark and watery realm. Johnniebo Ashevak's Taleelayo and Sea Bird reveals a Sedna that is closely related to her sea-bird husband the fulmar. She appears to have a cap of short feathers and long plumage on the top of her head. In this print Sedna is not only half fish, she is also walking on two human legs and appears to be trying to follow the fulmar as he takes to the sky. As illustrated in Johnniebo Ashevak's print, the central figure of the Sedna is in close proximity to her second husband, the fulmar. Jessie Oonark accentuates the intimacy between the two beings. The sea bird actually appears within the body of the Sedna. Finely Arcticulated feathers cover all but her human head and her first dog-husband hovers at a distance alongside another spirit entity or animal. Return to Inuit Legends and stories Return to Inuit artists main page