Parr (1893 - 1969)

Parr was born in 1893 in a remote part of the south coast of Qikiqtaaluk Nunavut (Baffin Island) at a campsite near Kinngait (Cape Dorset). He lived a traditional nomadic hunting life with his wife Eleeshuse and had nine children, many of whom became artists. Parr settled permanently in Kinngait in 1961 due to ill health. Terry Ryan encouraged Parr to try drawing when he was 68 years old. By the time of his death on in 1969 Parr had created hundreds of drawings and contributed 34 prints to the Cape Dorset print collections. His drawings are regarded as a record for future generations of the traditional hunting and nomadic lifestyle of the Inuit. Parr felt most comfortable creating prints using stonecut and stencilling. He also liked working with felt-tipped pens, coloured pencils and pastels.