The Circumpolar Incubator

The Circumpolar Incubator: Northern Indigenous Screen-based Arts & Installation

4th Space and Milieux Institute for Arts, Culture, and Technology at Concordia University

May 20-30, 2022 

The Circumpolar Incubator brought together a group of emerging and mid-career northern Indigenous artists from across Inuit Nunangat, the Yukon and Northwest Territories to develop, transform and expand their existing artistic practices with the use of new technologies and screen-based media for digital storytelling. The ten-day incubator was organized by Inuit Futures in Arts Leadership: The Pilimmaksarniq/ Pijariuqsarniq Project and The Space Between Us, Aabijijiwan New Media Lab and the Indigenous Futures Research Centre, made possible through the support of the Indigenous Screen Office and the Canada Media Fund, and hosted by Milieux Institute for Arts, Culture, and Technology at Concordia University in Montreal, QC, between May 20th - 30th, 2022. The Circumpolar Incubator gave artists full access to extensive filmmaking, digital media arts, studio and post-production facilities at the Milieux Institute and Concordia’s Centre for Digital Arts. 

Using an innovative ‘incubator’ model wherein artists of various practices, knowledges, experiences and skills come together for an intensive period of training, collaboration and production, the artists and various project mentors came together over the course of two weeks, to learn screen-based arts skills, share expertise, and create new works. The artists – Kaylyn Baker, Tamika Knutson, Kyle Aleekuk, Eldred Allen, Niap Saunders, Mark Igloliorte, Casey Koyzcan, Melaw Nakehk'o, and Nyla Innuksuk – worked at Milieux intensively during the Incubator, while Yukon artists Robyn Mcleod and Robby Dick participated remotely. Additionally, throughout the week the mid-career artists gave workshops and artist talks to the whole group, providing opportunities for the emerging artists to learn from their experiences as well. The format of the Incubator, paired with access to professional and peer support in everything from project conceptualization, development, production and post-production, launched these artists’ vision and perspectives into screen-based, digital media, and digital storytelling formats, creating projects including immersive video, Augmented Reality, projection and other digital arts.

Works created during The Circumpolar Incubator were exhibited in Whitehorse for the Arctic Arts Summit in June 2022 in two exhibitions: TETHER at the Yukon Arts Centre and ARCTIC XR / ARCTIC AR, while the ARCTIC XR program has also since been shown at the 59th International Biennale de Venezia: Milk of Dreams in August and September 2022 and Nuit Blanche Toronto in October 2022.