Tips on How to Purchase and Buy Authentic Canadian Inuit Art (Eskimo Art) Sculptures



Numerous visitors to Canada will be exposed to Inuit art (Eskimo art) sculptures while touring the country. These are the magnificent handmade sculptures carved from stone by the Inuit artists living in the northern Arctic regions of Canada. While in a few of the major Canadian cities (Toronto, Vancouver, Montreal, Ottawa, and Quebec City) or other tourist areas popular with global visitors such as Banff, Inuit sculptures will be seen at numerous retail stores and displayed at some museums. Because Inuit art has been getting a growing number of international exposure, individuals might be seeing this Canadian fine art type at galleries and museums located outside Canada too. As a result, it will be natural for lots of tourists and art collectors to decide that they want to purchase Inuit sculptures as good keepsakes for their homes or as extremely special presents for others. Assuming that the intention is to get an genuine piece of Inuit art rather than a cheap tourist replica, the concern occurs on how does one differentiate the genuine thing from the phonies?

It would be quite disappointing to bring home a piece just to learn later on that it isn't really genuine and even made in Canada. If one is lucky enough to be traveling in the Canadian Arctic where the Inuit live and make their terrific artwork, then it can be safely assumed that any Inuit art piece bought from a local northern shop or straight from an Inuit carver would be authentic. One would have to be more mindful in other places in Canada, particularly in tourist locations where all sorts of other Canadian mementos such as t-shirts, hockey jerseys, postcards, key chains, maple syrup, and other Native Canadian arts are sold.

The safest places to purchase Inuit sculptures to make sure credibility are always the trustworthy galleries that focus on Canadian Inuit art and Eskimo art. A few of these galleries have ads in the city tour guide found in hotels.

Respectable Inuit art galleries are likewise listed in Inuit Art Quarterly magazine which adheres entirely to Inuit art. These galleries will generally be located in the downtown traveler areas of significant cities. When one strolls into these galleries, one will see that there will be just Inuit art and possibly Native art however none of the other usual traveler mementos such as postcards or tee shirts . These galleries will have only authentic Inuit art for sale as they do not handle imitations or fakes . Just to be even more secure, ensure that the piece you are interested in comes with a Canadian federal government Igloo tag accrediting that it was handmade by a Canadian Inuit artist. The Inuit sculpture might be signed by the carver either in English or Inuit syllabics but not all genuine pieces are signed. So be aware that an anonymous piece may still be certainly genuine.

A few of these Inuit art galleries also have websites so you might shop and buy genuine Inuit art sculpture from home throughout the world. In addition to these street retail specialized galleries, there are now trustworthy online galleries that also focus on authentic Inuit art. Since of lower overheads, these online galleries are a excellent option for buying Inuit art since the rates are generally lower than those at street retail galleries. Naturally, like any other shopping on the internet, one should take care so when handling an online gallery, ensure that their pieces also come with the main Igloo tags to make sure credibility.

Some tourist stores do bring genuine Inuit art as well as the other touristy keepsakes in order to cater to all types of travelers. Authentic Inuit sculpture is carved from stone and for that reason should have some weight or mass to it. An genuine Inuit sculpture is a one of a kind piece of artwork and nothing else on the store racks will look precisely like it.

Where it ends up being harder to figure out authenticity are with the reproductions that are also made of stone. This can be a genuine gray area to those not familiar with authentic Inuit art. They do have mass and might even have some kind of tag suggesting that it was handmade but if there are other pieces on the shelves that look too similar in detail, they are more than likely not authentic. If a seller claims that such as piece is genuine, ask to see the main Igloo tag that includes it which will have information on the artist, location where it was made and the year it was carved. Move on if the Igloo tag is not offered. The genuine pieces with the accompanying official Igloo tags will constantly be the greatest priced and are normally kept in a different ( maybe even locked) shelf within the store.


Given that Inuit art has been getting more and more global exposure, people may be seeing this Canadian fine art type at museums and galleries located outside Canada too. If one is fortunate enough to be traveling in the Canadian Arctic where the Inuit live and make their terrific artwork, then it can be safely assumed that any Inuit art piece purchased from a regional northern store or directly from an Inuit carver would be genuine. Trustworthy Inuit art galleries are likewise listed in Inuit Art Quarterly publication which is devoted totally to Inuit art. https://www.quora.com/profile/Kurt-Criter The Inuit sculpture may be signed by the carver either in English or Inuit syllabics however not all genuine pieces are signed. Some of these Inuit art galleries also have websites so you might shop and purchase genuine Inuit art sculpture from house anywhere in the world.

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