Houston's Portrait
1954
Pudlat Pootoogook (1919-1985)

This is a caricature of James Houston's head. At the time, Houston was trying to learn Inuktitut, the language of the Inuit. To visualize his attempt, Pudlat, who sometimes taught him, carved Houston's likeness as a joke, with the face in stone, the teeth and eyes in ivory, and the back of the head in wood. The face and the back of the head were separate. Pudlat then hollowed out the stone and inserted ivory teeth, which move when the carving is shaken.

Some Inuit artists portray their neighbours or local traders with features that are recognizable. Houston, still young, is portrayed with a large chin and leftover army haircut. The Inuit on the east coast of Hudson Bay called him Tadlo (Chin), and those on Baffin Island called him Saumik (Left-handed).