Reeks - Canadian Eskimo Arts Council

30 cm of textual records

The Canadian Eskimo Arts Council (CEAC) was established in 1967 (succeeding an earlier advisory group formed in 1959) as an advisory board to the Minister of Indian Affairs and Northern Development on all matters relating to the promotion and quality control of Eskimo crafts and arts in Canada. In collaboration with the various Eskimo cooperatives and their marketing agencies, CEAC was responsible for the annual selection of Inuit prints for sale and their promotion to buyers. CEAC also mounted the international art exhibition “Sculpture/Inuit: Masterworks of the Canadian Arctic”. Members of CEAC were appointed at the pleasure of the Minister and were drawn from different regions. They included Inuit and southern artists, gallery owners and others with a background in the marketing and promotion of art. George Swinton was a member of the Council from 1967 to [ca.1973].

Materials described here consist of documents pertaining to the formation and administration of CEAC and include correspondence, minutes of meetings and other materials related to the promotion and marketing of Inuit art by the Council.

Some folders were renamed to better reflect the folder contents; previous folder names also preserved.

Other records pertaining to the Canadian Eskimo Arts Council are described with the records described as part of the series ‘Department of Northern Affairs’, with the file titled ‘Eskimo Point Reports’ described as part of the series Inuit Cultural Institute, and with the files titled ‘Reports on Field Trips’ and ‘Eskimo Art Council’ described as part of the series ‘Personal’ elsewhere in this fonds.

Records of the Canadian Eskimo Arts Council dating from 1959 to 1989 have been accessioned by Library and Archives Canada. Further records pertaining to the activities of the Canadian Eskimo Arts Council and George Swinton’s role in the Council form part of the RG Williamson fonds, accessioned by the University of Saskatchewan Archives.