This astonishing overview of Inuit art features the voices and life stories of dozens of the most important Arctic artists, showcasing the vitality and diversity of an enduring tradition.

In less than a decade, Dan and Martha Albrecht have put together the finest collection of Inuit art ever assembled -- more than four thousand pieces, all of which they have donated to the Heard Museum in Phoenix, Arizona.

In Arctic Spirit, Canadian writer Ingo Hessel, the Albrechts' mentor and main advisor, presents the best of these works -- nearly 200 sculpture, prints, drawings and fabrics, from prehistoric carvings to contemporary mixed media. The book is arranged according to the major themes in Inuit art. More than half of the extensive text is in the words of the artists themselves.

Ingo Hessel is the Albrecht Adjunct Curator of Inuit Art at the Heard Museum in Phoenix. His publications include the seminal Inuit Art: An Introduction (1998), Arctic Spirit (2006) and Sanattiaqsimajut: Inuit Art from the Carleton University Art Gallery Collection (2009). He curated the exhibition Arctic Spirit for the Heard Museum, which toured to ten cities across North America from 2006 to 2009. For twelve years he was Special Projects Officer and Coordinator of the Inuit Art Section in the Canadian Government's Department of Indian and Northern Affairs, which published his educational booklet Canadian Inuit Sculpture in eight languages. Ingo Hessel is also a sculptor who has had many solo exhibitions in Canada and Japan.

Ingo Hessel's profile page

• Winner, Alcuin Society Award for Excellence in Book Design