1. INUIT CARVING

2. Traditionally, Inuit people would use walrus ivory
Traditionally, Inuit people would use walrus ivory. Now it is more common to carve soapstone

3. Dorset Culture
The Dorset culture, which became culturally distinct around 600 BCE, produced a significant amount of figurative art in the mediums of walrus ivory, bone, caribou antler, and on rare occasion stone. Subjects included birds, bears, walruses, seals, and human figures, as well as remarkably small masks. The Dorsets depicted bears and other animals in ivory with lines indicating their skeletal system; bears in such a style are known as "flying bears".

4. Modern Times
Traditionally, the Inuit carved objects for decoration, use in games, religious purposes, or self-amusement. However the nature and functions of Inuit carvings changed rapidly after contact with European society. This change accelerated after around 1949, when the Inuit began setting into communities, and the Canadian government began to encourage a carving industry as a source of income for the Inuit.

5. Worldview: Spirituality
Inuit spirituality was closely tied to a system of rituals that were integrated into the daily life of the people. The harshness and randomness hunter-gatherer life in the Arctic ensured that Inuit lived with concern for the uncontrollable, where a streak of bad luck could destroy an entire community. By believing that all things, including animals, have souls like those of humans, any hunt that failed to show appropriate respect would offend a spirit and cause it to seek revenge. Animals were greatly respected in this worldview

6. The Dancing Bear Example
When Inuit shamans with dead people, invisible entities or human beings in far away places, they danced whilst playing drums in order to summon the helpful animal spirits. The visible appearance of the shaman would alter and adopt a bear form. The dancing bear requires more skill to carve than its non-dancing equivalent, as the entire stone carving is usually balanced on one foot of the bear, making these sculptures difficult to produce