Siku Allooloo (born 1986) is an

Inuk Inuit (singular: Inuk) are a group of culturally and historically similar Indigenous peoples of the Americas, Indigenous peoples traditionally inhabiting the Arctic and Subarctic regions of North America and Russia, including Greenland, Labr ...

/Haitian/

Taíno The Taíno are the Indigenous peoples of the Caribbean, Indigenous peoples of the Greater Antilles and surrounding islands. At the time of European contact in the late 15th century, they were the principal inhabitants of most of what is now The ...

writer, artist, facilitator, filmmaker, and land-based educator from

Dene The Dene people () are an Indigenous group of First Nations who inhabit the northern boreal, subarctic and Arctic regions of Canada. The Dene speak Northern Athabaskan languages and it is the common Athabaskan word for "people". The term ...

ndeh ("the Land of the People"),

Northwest Territories The Northwest Territories is a federal Provinces and territories of Canada, territory of Canada. At a land area of approximately and a 2021 census population of 41,070, it is the second-largest and the most populous of Provinces and territorie ...

, and

Pond Inlet Pond Inlet () is a small, predominantly Inuit community in the Qikiqtaaluk Region of Nunavut, Canada, located on northern Baffin Island. To the Inuit the name of the place "is and always has been Mittimatalik." The Scottish explorer John Ross (R ...

Nunavut Nunavut is the largest and northernmost Provinces and territories of Canada#Territories, territory of Canada. It was separated officially from the Northwest Territories on April 1, 1999, via the ''Nunavut Act'' and the Nunavut Land Claims Agr ...

in Canada. Allooloo's works incorporates the legacies of resistance to

settler colonialism Settler colonialism is a logic and structure of displacement by Settler, settlers, using colonial rule, over an environment for replacing it and its indigenous peoples with settlements and the society of the settlers. Settler colonialism is ...

and revitalization of Indigenous communities. Through her writing, visual art, and activism, Allooloo fights against colonial violence on Indigenous women. She has been widely recognized for her leadership in grassroots activism, particularly in advocating for land and water protection. She won '' Briarpatch'' magazine's 2016 creative nonfiction contest with the piece titled "Living Death".

Educational background

Siku Allooloo holds a Bachelor of Arts degree (BA) in

Anthropology Anthropology is the scientific study of humanity, concerned with human behavior, human biology, cultures, society, societies, and linguistics, in both the present and past, including archaic humans. Social anthropology studies patterns of behav ...

and

Indigenous studies There is no generally accepted definition of Indigenous peoples, although in the 21st century the focus has been on self-identification, cultural difference from other groups in a state, a special relationship with their traditional territ ...

from the

University of Victoria The University of Victoria (UVic) is a public research university located in the municipalities of Oak Bay, British Columbia, Oak Bay and Saanich, British Columbia, Canada. Established in 1903 as Victoria College, British Columbia, Victoria Col ...

. Her diverse background in cultural land-based programming, youth development, research, and solidarity serves as the foundation of her creativity.

Activism

In 2013, Allooloo drafted principles for the Indigenous Nationhood movement. This website was a call for Aboriginal nations to move away from the

Indian Act The ''Indian Act'' () is a Canadian Act of Parliament that concerns registered Indians, their bands, and the system of Indian reserves. First passed in 1876 and still in force with amendments, it is the primary document that defines how t ...

and towards autonomy from the

Canadian government The Government of Canada (), formally His Majesty's Government (), is the body responsible for the federal administration of Canada. The term ''Government of Canada'' refers specifically to the executive, which includes ministers of the Crown ( ...

. She also participated in integrating the

Idle No More Idle No More is an ongoing protest movement, founded in December 2012 by four women: three First Nations women and one non-Native ally. It is a grassroots movement among the Indigenous peoples in Canada comprising the First Nations, Métis a ...

movement into the North. In 2016, Allooloo assisted the international organization,

Human Rights Watch Human Rights Watch (HRW) is an international non-governmental organization that conducts research and advocacy on human rights. Headquartered in New York City, the group investigates and reports on issues including War crime, war crimes, crim ...

's investigation about police abuse of Indigenous women in

Saskatchewan Saskatchewan is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province in Western Canada. It is bordered on the west by Alberta, on the north by the Northwest Territories, on the east by Manitoba, to the northeast by Nunavut, and to the south by the ...

. In 2020, Allooloo participated in a demonstration of support for

Wetʼsuwetʼen First Nation The Wetʼsuwetʼen First Nation is a Wetʼsuwetʼen First Nations band located outside of the village of Burns Lake, British Columbia, Canada. It was formerly known as the ''Broman Lake Indian Band'' and is still usually referred to as ''Broman ...

Yukon Yukon () is a Provinces and territories of Canada, territory of Canada, bordering British Columbia to the south, the Northwest Territories to the east, the Beaufort Sea to the north, and the U.S. state of Alaska to the west. It is Canada’s we ...

. In late December 2019, a British Columbia judge signed off on an injunction that would prevent the Wet'suwet'en from protecting their land from the proposed Coastal GasLink Pipeline.

Visual art

Themes

Siku Allooloo explores a wide range of themes throughout her work, with a strong focus on reclaiming and revitalizing Indigenous knowledge and traditions. She is particularly dedicated to addressing the 'patching' of ancestral gaps caused by colonialism, working to restore cultural continuity and strengthen Indigenous identity. Her work also emphasizes land-based education, teaching from a cultural perspective that reconnects Indigenous peoples with their ancestral lands, languages, and ways of knowing. * Techniques Allooloo has employed a diverse range of artistic techniques, including traditional and contemporary practices such as intricate traditional

beadwork Beadwork is the art or craft of attaching beads to one another by stringing them onto a thread or thin wire with a sewing or beading needle or sewing them to cloth. Beads are produced in a diverse range of materials, shapes, and sizes, and vary ...

, evocative poetry, hand-carved stamping, and documentary filmmaking.

Akia (2019)

Akia is a poem written on Seal skin on canvas, the poem is based on an intimate family story, between her and her father and attempting to repair things that have been severed from colonialism, a major theme being the transformation of ones suffering in terms of a lack of or lost identity from colonization and imperialism.

Sapajuji (protector) (2021)

Sapajuji is a beaded chest pieces on a

Amauti The amauti (also ''amaut'' or ''amautik'', plural ''amautiit'') is the parka worn by Inuit women of the eastern area of Northern Canada. Up until about two years of age, the child nestles against the mother's back in the amaut, the built-in baby ...

design, which is a traditional native garment. The Chest pieces is worn as a protective garment. The use of beading alludes to connection of ones culture as a means of protection, and self defense. This piece is supposed to represent the deflection of colonialism, violence and erasure.

Spirit Emulsion (2022)

Spirit emulsion is a short film telling the story of Taíno culture and reconnecting with ones identity. This short film is inspired by Allooloo's mother and speaks of Taíno teachings and practices persist despite colonial attempts at distortion and erasure.

Indígena (2025)

This is a short film that is still currently in production, and is set to be released later in 2025. This is short documentary style film that recalls Taíno history, alluding to her mother's activism.

Career

Allooloo also has a career in journalism mirroring the career of her mother, where she advocates for Indigenous peoples. She specifically covers stories about Native women, and environmental activism. Her writing has been featured in '' Briarpatch'', ''

The Malahat Review ''The Malahat Review'' is a Canadian quarterly literary magazine established in 1967. It features contemporary Canadian and international works of poetry, fiction, and creative non-fiction as well as reviews of recently published Canadian litera ...

'', Nuit Blanche Toronto, ''

Canadian Art Canadian art refers to the visual arts, visual (including painting, photography, and printmaking) as well as plastic arts (such as sculpture) originating from the geographical area of contemporary Canada. Art in Canada is marked by thousands of ...

'' ,

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in Manchester in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'' and changed its name in 1959, followed by a move to London. Along with its sister paper, ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardi ...

Chatelaine Chatelaine may refer to: *Chatelaine (chain), a set of short chains on a belt worn by women and men for carrying keys, thimble and/or sewing kit, etc. * Chatelaine (horse), a racehorse * ''Chatelaine'' (magazine), an English-language Canadian wom ...

and Surrey Art Gallery Presents, among other publications. She was faculty for the residency "The Space Between Us: Technology, collaboration, and the future" held at the

Banff Centre for Arts and Creativity Banff Centre for Arts and Creativity (formerly Banff Centre) is an arts and culture educational institution in Banff, Alberta. It offers arts programs in the performing and fine arts, as well as leadership training. It was established in 1933 ...

. Allooloo was also the artistic producer for "Bystander: Study Guide" by the Gwaandak Theatre in 2018.

Group exhibitions and projects

Allooloo has collaborated artistically with Indigenous artists across Canada since 2014. Exhibitions and projects include: * 2015: Allooloo participated in the Indigenous Writers Program at the

Banff Centre Banff Centre for Arts and Creativity (formerly Banff Centre) is an arts and culture educational institution in Banff, Alberta, Banff, Alberta. It offers arts programs in the Performing arts, performing and fine arts, as well as leadership trai ...

Alberta Alberta is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province in Canada. It is a part of Western Canada and is one of the three Canadian Prairies, prairie provinces. Alberta is bordered by British Columbia to its west, Saskatchewan to its east, t ...

. * 2017: ''Way in Which It Was Given to Us'' at Surrey Art Gallery, British Columbia. Allooloo's essay was presented accompanied with Marianne Nicolson's animation for the city's annual public art project, UrbanScreen. * 2017: ''Life on Neebahgeezis; A Luminous Engagement, Many Possible Futures'' at

Nuit Blanche Nuit Blanche () (White Night) is an annual all-night or night-time arts festival of a city. A Nuit Blanche typically has museums, private and public art galleries, and other cultural institutions open and free of charge, with the centre of the ...

in Toronto (2017), curated by Maria Hupfield. With an indigenous writer and academic, Jaskiran Dhillon, Allooloo conducted the commissioned project, ''In Conversation: Becoming an Accomplice.'' * 2018: ''Mirrored in Stone,'' as a part a larger project called ''New Chapter program'' funded through

Canada Council The Canada Council for the Arts (), commonly called the Canada Council, is a Crown corporations of Canada, Crown corporation established in 1957 as an arts council of the Government of Canada. It is Canada's public arts funder, with a mandate to ...

for the Arts. This project created a collaborative documentary film in collaboration with Vancouver-based artists, Marianne Nicolson and

Althea Thauberger Althea Thauberger (born 1970, Saskatoon, Canada) is a Canadian visual artist, film maker and educator. Her work engages relational practices rooted in sustained collaborations with groups or communities through social, theatrical and textual proce ...

with five emerging artists including Allooloo. * 2018: ''This world; here,'' Arts & Media Lab, the Isabel Bader Centre for Performing Arts, Queens University. * 2019: ''Hexsa'am,''

Morris and Helen Belkin Art Gallery The Morris and Helen Belkin Art Gallery is a contemporary art gallery in Vancouver, British Columbia, on the campus of the University of British Columbia. The gallery is housed in a building designed by architect Peter Cardew which opened in 1995 ...

'. Her piece, "Akia" was displayed through sealskin on canvas.

Publications

Allooloo's creative non-fiction and poetry pieces appear in several journals, magazines, news articles, and academic books. * In 2015, she wrote an article for the ''

Northern Journal The ''Northern Journal'' was a weekly newspaper based out of Fort Smith, Northwest Territories, Canada. History The newspaper was founded in 1977 as the Slave River Journal. In 2011, owner and publisher Don Jaque renamed the paper to expand it ...

'' titled "Reclaim justice, end the violence." * In 2016, Allooloo wrote ''Dismantling Columbus and the Power of the Present'' for Truthout. * In 2016, Allooloo's creative nonfiction piece "Living Death" won ''Briarpatch'' magazine's creative nonfiction contest. * In 2016, Allooloo's creative nonfiction piece, "Caribou People" appeared in the magazine ''Indigenous Perspectives''. This piece was later included in the book, ''Shapes of Native Nonfiction: Collected Essays by Contemporary Writers'', published by Washington University Press in 2019''.'' Though depicting the feast on caribou with Allooloo's own relatives, this piece describes the impact of climate change on Indigenous people living in the north. * In 2017, four poems, individually titled: "Because, colonialism", "Survivor's Guilt guilt", "Stone whisperer", and "Offering", were featured in ''

The New Quarterly ''The New Quarterly'' is a literary magazine based in Waterloo, Ontario that publishes short fiction, poetry, and creative non-fiction from emerging and established Canadian writers. History and profile ''The New Quarterly'' was established in ...

''. * In 2019, the poem for "Akia" was published in ''

''. This piece was also displayed in 2019 exhibition "Hexsa'am: To Be Here Always." at

, through sealskin on canvas.

Importance

While Siku is not the first to develop these art techniques or depicting ones culture. The importance of her artwork lies in her distinct and unique perspective she offers, as Allooloo stands as a voice for not only

Inuit Inuit (singular: Inuk) are a group of culturally and historically similar Indigenous peoples traditionally inhabiting the Arctic and Subarctic regions of North America and Russia, including Greenland, Labrador, Quebec, Nunavut, the Northwe ...

people, but also the

people. She represents both communities and makes art to depict not only their struggles but their recovery. Through her art, she combines both sides of her ancestry to amplify indigenous voices specifically relating to land rights.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Allooloo, Siku People from Pond Inlet 21st-century Canadian artists 21st-century Canadian non-fiction writers 21st-century Canadian women artists 21st-century Canadian women writers 21st-century Inuit artists 21st-century Inuit women 21st-century Inuit people 21st-century indigenous writers of the Americas Living people 1986 births Canadian people of Haitian descent Artists from Nunavut Writers from Nunavut Inuit writers Canadian Inuit women artists Canadian Inuit artists