Last surviving members of the Sadlermiut, an Inuit group wiped-out by a pandemic in 1902. The pandemic is thought to have originated from contact with a whaling ship. Photo taken by Geraldine Moodie in Fullerton Harbour, Nunavut, in May 1905. (Glenbow Archives.
The Sadlermiut were a hunter-gatherer people whose subsistence relied primarily on fishing and caribou hunting, although they also hunted seals, polar bears, and walruses. Unlike the mainland Inuit, the Sadlermiut were reported to show very little interest in hunting whales and trapping and were thus of little use to traders who frequented Coral Harbour. In addition, the Sadlermiut often kept a "vigilant distance" between themselves and the traders, the explorers and the Aivilingmiut. This may be in part due to historical confrontations with the Aivilingmiut who sought Southampton Island for its prosperous whaling potential, and the Dene peoples who moved northwards during the summer in pursuit of caribou.
The Sadlermiut language is unknown, but appears to have been significantly different from that of their mainland neighbours. The neighbouring Inuit reported that they used "baby talk", but it is not clear if this means they spoke a distinct variety of Inuit language, or that they used pidgin Inuktitut as a contact language.
By the second half of 19th century, the Sadlermiut population numbered above 200. But then the contact with outsiders increased and various diseases caused a steep decline in population. The ethnic group was wiped out in 1902-03, as a result of a pandemic that spread among the community from the whaling ship Active. Out of the total population of 58, there were only 5 survivors (one adult woman and 4 children). The survivors were then evacuated to Naujaat. Out of this group of survivors, only two children were alive by 1908, and they had no memory of Sadlermiut traditions.
Other images captured by Geraldine Moodie in Nunavut -
Inuit man, Kingnuck, of the Kinepetoo tribe, Fullerton Harbour, Nunavut, February 5, 1905
Inuit woman, Kootucktuck, in her beaded attigi. Fullerton Harbour, Nunavut, February 1905
Inuit woman, Mirkiook, and her child, Fullerton Harbour, Nunavut, c.1905
Moodie wrote of the Inuit: ‘They are very bright and intelligent, her eyes were taking stock of everything all the time’
Inuit igloos, Fullerton Harbour, Nunavut, c.October 1905
Inuit woman ice fishing, Fullerton Harbour, Nunavut, 1905
'DGS Arctic' (Dominion Government Ship) frozen in the ice, Fullerton Harbour, Nunavut, April 1905
Geraldine Moodie overcame harsh conditions to become western Canada’s first professional female photographer, capturing beautiful images in the country’s most remote regions.
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Kyoto, March 2021. Sakura season is in full swing. Cherry trees are heavy with blossom. Japan's symbolic rebirth is underway.
Streets should be heaving with admirers. Some drenched in the significance of the moment. Others enjoying the spectacle. A few desperate to grab that perfect selfie for Instagram.
Except there is an uneasy stillness.
Philosopher's Walk, the iconic centerpiece, is quiet and flows freely. There's plenty of time to pause and admire the moment or snap a photo without the frame filled with others doing the same. There are polite nods and even occasional words spoken between strangers.
As devastating as the pandemic was for Japan's tourism, I am grateful for these quieter moments. They offered an opportunity to enjoy the here and now without worrying about the crowds or fretting I was somehow spoiling someone's shot.
While a small part of me might hanker for quiet times again, I know it won't happen. Or rather, I hope it won't happen.
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For Theatre International we're supposed to bring in the text of a post from the internet that we find this week that is particularly striking
There's a bird site post floating around here I'm going to use, a post Michael Sheen wrote to a fan in answer to a question about their lack of confidence causing them trouble in a role they'd been cast in:
"Imagine the character is a real person who can only live again when someone plays them. They're desperate to be alive. To connect with people. To breathe. To see. To touch. Only you have the power to give that to them. Now get on with it and leave your worrying about yourself"
I love this so, so much. Memorised it immediately
Never been able to just "be confident." Oh sure I can fake it, but it's brittle and liable to lead to a self-centred sort of insecurity that revolves on itself getting ever worse, like the midnight picking of a hangnail. Bah. Useless. Boring
But shift the lens from the artist as someone who has to do it "right" - whatever that even means - to the artist as someone helping someone else, that's a mental-emotional place I can work from and thrive even in terrifying or frustrating conditions
It's like helping a friend move house, isn't it? You don't endlessly wonder if you're carrying the cartons "correctly." Or how other people will perceive your carton carrying. Cartons need carried; you carry cartons. Doesn't even matter if you're not confident about it. Your friend needs help and you provide it. I'm not trying to say there's no craft; I am saying that if there's craft in carton carrying, it probably comes after self-aware pantomime carton carrying gives way to authentic carton carrying
Very cool and sexy of the world to give me the 52 words that sever the entire artistic process from the rubbish holding me back right when I needed them and was ready to listen
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