“Traces of Coming and Going”: The Contemporary Creation of Inuksuit on the Avalon Peninsula

• Main Author: McNeill, Lynne
• Format: Text
• Language: unknown
• Published: Hosted by Utah State University Libraries 2004
• Subjects: Inuksuit; Avalon Peninsula; contemporary creation; English Language and Literature; Meredith; Newfoundland
• Online Access: https://digitalcommons.usu.edu/english_facpub/79

Around the city of St John's, Newfoundland, the construction of inuksuit (stacks of rocks, often in the form of a person) is a popular pastime for visitors to outdoor sites, as evidenced by the abundance of these figures along walking trails and hiking trails, on beaches, and at campgrounds. Meredith Wilson and Bruno David, in the introduction to their compilation of essays entitled Inscribed Landscapes, state that they feel a multiplicity of meanings, common in artistic cultural productions, is especially prevalent in rock art* due to the many layers of communication that are present: natural landscapes, sociocultural influences, and artistic representation. This paper will explore the creation and uses of inuksuit in this contemporary context, and will attempt to unravel their meaning within the contexts of landscape, place-making, and cultural borrowing.