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Photographer to send message from top of the world

Is a picture of a thousand people better than a word or two on climate change?

SARA MINOGUE

Iqalungmiut who don't have a recent photo of themselves on the sea ice can get one for free next Thursday - only you'll need a high powered magnifying glass to pick yourself out of the crowd.

On April 21, an aerial artist from California will corral 1,000 people on the sea ice outside Rotary Park in Apex into a giant image in the shape of a drum dancer. He will then take photographs from a helicopter flying overhead.

"The idea is to send a message from the top of the world," says Sheila Watt-Cloutier, president of the Inuit Circumpolar Conference.

The project is called Arctic Wisdom, and is designed to draw global attention to the effect of climate change on Inuit.

The ICC - an international group representing Inuit in Russia, Alaska, Greenland and Canada - invited the artist to Iqaluit several months ago (with the help of Ayaya, a marketing and deign company owned by Nortext, which also owns this newspaper).

Watt-Cloutier, who has helmed the ICC since Canada took over as chair of the group in 2002, travels widely promoting Inuit unity, and lately, letting people know about the environmental damage that greenhouse gases are causing in the Arctic.

She views the project as "a fun and creative way" to illustrate the people who are directly affected by rising global temperatures, changing weather, and weakening sea ice.

She also thought the project would be a good way to bring the international jet-set organization back to its roots.

"The work I do is one that takes me to far places," Watt-Cloutier said. "This project is coming home."

The artist behind the project is John Quigley, who has produced 55 aerial people images through his California production company, Spectral Q.

On his website, Quigley describes his work as "a series of human mosaic creations designed to bring communities together to communicate important messages for the common good."

The "common good" is generally delivered through lavish media coverage, often international in reach.

In the Nunatsiaq newsroom on Monday, however, Quigley emphasized the importance of this type of event to the people who participate. The massive collaboration brings many people together, and becomes a shared memory for everyone involved.

"You can never guarantee media," Quigley says, "so let's make sure whatever we do is a good experience in itself.

In this case, though, you can't guarantee anything. While Quigley hopes for good weather, he's aware that snow, wind or clouds could create imperfect conditions.

"Appropriately, weather is the major factor in this drama."

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