Interview with Martha Kyak

Martha Kyak, a fashion designer and artist from Mittimatalik (Pond Inlet), NU, gave a live interview and fashion show for the NITV audience. LIVE on May 20, 2020.

Martha Kyak is a self-taught artist and seamstress. She grew up in Pond Inlet, Nunavut and is the youngest of eleven children. Most of her family members are creative, artistic, and in the field of education. Living in Pond Inlet, Martha had her own retail store selling sewing supplies and other items. Her passion has always been sewing and designing as she grew up watching her mother and sisters sew. As an artist, she has illustrated several children's books, as well as graphic designing and producing Inuktitut books and teaching resources.

She has been an educator for many years and has had a meaningful career in many positions as a teacher, principal and superintendent. Martha is currently an instructor at the Ottawa based college program Nunavut Sivuniksavut where she teaches Inuit History, Inuktitut, and sewing. She is a graduate of McGill University.

In Ottawa, away from family and her community, she finds more time to create garments, jewelry and paintings. True to her arctic roots, sealskin is featured predominantly in many of her designs