Mona Thrasher, Igloo Church, Inuvik
Mona Thrasher
I was born in 1942, in a bush camp located between Aklavik and what is today Inuvik.
My father was the famous Billy Thrasher who was himself the son of a Portuguese whaler who cam to the arctic in the last century.
My father Billy married twice. After his first wife died, he married her sister, Alice, who was an Alaskan Eskimo woman. I was the first child born of that second union.. My father died when I was 18, that is in 1960. He is buried in the local cemetery. As of today my mother is still alive.
At age 10, I was sent to the Roman Catholic school of Aklavik for a period of seven years.
At age 13, I was the victim of an unfortunate accident, a shotgun blast near my head left me partially deaf and mute.
At age 18, that is in 1960, the igloo church of Inuvik was being completed. Father Adam who was then the pastor, called upon me to do some of the art work that is found in the church. I had no previous experience but father saw in me someone capable of doing an acceptable job. I went to work and within three months I painted the stations of the cross on the circular wall of the igloo church., as well as the other paintings that you can see above the different entrances of the church.
Today, I enjoy painting different scenes of the Eskimo life of my forefathers. Igloos are a thing of the past, dog teams are on the way out, seal hunting has mostly become a sport with my people, but the very fact that I paint those scenes reminds people that not so long ago, men lived that way and survived amidst hardship and found happiness in a climate whose harshness is unparalleled anywhere else in the world.
You will notice that my basic colours are white and blue because that is the way my country appears to me. It is made of blue sky and blue water. Even the snow which cover the gourd for 9 months out of 12, has a bluish tint on account of the prevalent semi darkness.
I get my inspiration from the different activities which are at the very heart of the Eskimo way of life. You will see women cutting fish, men driving dog teams, children playing in he snow. I even try to put a soul into the meager trees of my country, the water of its lakes and rivers as well as in the beautiful sunsets which linger for hours in the sky during the fall.
What I paint is what I see. And I paint it as I see it. Never studied in any art school, and never had any teachers as such except some of the Oblate missionaries who helped me launch my career.
My natural abilities and talents have not been refined by an institute of fine arts, but at the same time it allows me to be more natural without worrying about the rules and regulations which many artists surround themselves with to give greater value and acceptance to their work.
I have painted nearly 800 canvases which have been sold throughout Canada and the United States.
Hopefully I will paint many more in the years to come.
It makes me extremely happy to know that through my art, many people get a better understanding of the North and its people.
Submitted: Paul Mackey