“I went from igloo to internet in less than 50 years.”

Peter Irniq, of the native Inuit people of Canada, shared his cultural background with ISU students and the Ames community on Wednesday.

Irniq was born in Nunavut in Canada’s Northwestern regions where he grew up as a young child. He draws from his experiences as a child which he reflects and educates people about in his lectures and art work throughout the world.

Irniq emphasized how the younger generations, especially of the Inuk people, should be able to keep hold of their cultural traditions as well as integrate into this new age of technology.

“I want our younger generation to be able to use modern technology, as well as be able to live a traditional life and be able to build an Igloo.” He spoke while a personal slideshow depicting the native Canadian people’s lifestyle played behind him.

Irniq is a known Inuk politician and artist, he was appointed to the board of the canadian race relations foundation. He also served as the second commissioner of Nunavut from April 2000 to April of 2005.

The lecture and traditional artwork throughout the Ames community by Irniq have drawn great attention. Members of Iowa State’s sociology, anthropology, American Indian, and art and design programs were all involved in his lecture.

“Inuit arts and crafts are in great demand all over the world … Art is something we always do in Inuit culture, and it’s always supporting our culture, it’s always supporting the environment, and it’s always supporting the animals. So it’s something I support 100 percent,” he emphasized.

Irniq will be building traditional Inuksuits or “signposts” throughout three Ames parks from now until Oct. 1. He will be at Brookside Park tomorrow morning, he will also be hosting two other demonstrations in Emma McCarthy Lee Park and Ada Hayden Park.

“We went through a process to find an artist every school year, to demonstrate in one of our parks … What we do is not just look for an interesting artist, but interesting cultural connections,” said Sam Stagg, a member of the Ames Public Art Commission.

“[Peter] is not just a sculptor; he is somewhat of a cultural icon,” Stagg said.

“This is the second time I remember a traveling artist, an environmental artist, has been brought in to the Ames area. Patrick Daugherty was brought in a couple years ago, and he drew a lot of people, and the commission got a lot of positive feedback. So that opens the way for traditional artists in the Ames community,” said Susan Gwiasda, a City of Ames public relations officer.

Many design students were present in the lecture. Irniq’s work also incorporated a bit of architecture. ISU art history professor John Cunnally spoke about Irniq’s work and it’s potential influence on ISU students. “We should be thankful of the art council of the city because they’ve been willing to bring people from other communities, other cultures to help show a variety of art to students and the city.”