Autumn Pinto MA Student

My thesis traces the history of the Norman Zepp and Judith Varga Inuit Art collection from its inception in the artist’s hand to its deposition here at the University of Saskatchewan, examining the political, academic, and economic structures which encouraged sale and collection. Between 1982-1992, Zepp travelled to the Arctic to conduct interviews with 43 Inuit artists, and in 2026, I interviewed Zepp about his own career as an art curator, historian and critic. These layered oral histories reveal a network of relationships between artists, art critics, art dealers, and heritage institutions, allowing us to better understand the overlapping phenomenologies which made up the 20th century Inuit art world as these figures negotiated the interpersonal, cultural, aesthetic, and financial meanings of these artworks. This research will provide a key case study that can contribute towards conversations between rights holders and museums as they work toward reconciliation and navigate the ambiguity regarding that appropriate heritage stewardship of Indigenous artworks that were created for 20th century commercial markets yet hold deep historical and cultural significance today.

• asg589@usask.ca