Alootook Ipellie was born in 1951 in a camp near Iqaluit, Nunavut, in what was then called the Northwest Territories. He spent his childhood and teenage years experiencing the transition from the traditional nomadic Inuit way of life to government-sponsored Inuit village settlements. In 1973, after a short stint as an announcer/producer for CBC radio in Iqaluit, he moved to Ottawa to study and pursue a career in art. He became a noted artist and a central figure in the Inuit literature movement. Ipellie was the editor of the magazines Inuit Today, published by the Inuit Tapirisat of Canada, Inuit, published by the Inuit Circumpolar Conference, and Kivioq: Inuit Fiction Magazine. His artwork and writing were first highlighted in the 1978 Inuit writing anthology Paper Stays Put: A Collection of Inuit Writing, and he was the co-ordinator of the Baffin Writer's Project. His artwork, essays, stories, and poetry have been featured in numerous publications, and his art has been featured in exhibits in Canada, Greenland, and the United States.