Tips on Ways To Purchase and Look For Genuine Canadian Inuit Art (Eskimo Art) Sculptures



Numerous visitors to Canada will be exposed to Inuit art (Eskimo art) sculptures while exploring the nation. These are the magnificent handmade sculptures sculpted from stone by the Inuit artists residing in the northern Arctic regions of Canada. While in some of the significant 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 worldwide exposure, people may be seeing this Canadian fine art form at museums and galleries situated outside Canada too. As a result, it will be natural for lots of tourists and art collectors to decide that they would like to acquire Inuit sculptures as nice keepsakes for their houses or as very distinct presents for others. Presuming that the objective is to get an authentic piece of Inuit art instead of a low-cost tourist imitation, the concern arises on how does one tell apart the real thing from the fakes?

It would be quite disappointing to bring home a piece just to learn later that it isn't really genuine or even made in Canada. If one is lucky enough to be taking a trip in the Canadian Arctic where the Inuit live and make their fantastic artwork, then it can be safely presumed that any Inuit art piece purchased from a regional northern store or directly from an Inuit carver would be authentic. One would have to be more cautious somewhere else in Canada, particularly in tourist areas where all sorts of other Canadian keepsakes such as t-shirts, hockey jerseys, postcards, essential chains, maple syrup, and other Native Canadian arts are sold.

The most safe locations to buy Inuit sculptures to guarantee authenticity are always the credible galleries that specialize in Canadian Inuit art and Eskimo art. Some of these galleries have ads in the city tourist guides discovered in hotels.

Reputable Inuit art galleries are also listed in Inuit Art Quarterly magazine which is dedicated entirely to Inuit art. When one strolls into these galleries, one will see that there will be just Inuit art and perhaps Native art but none of the other normal tourist keepsakes such as postcards or tee shirts . The Inuit sculpture may be signed by the carver either in English or Inuit syllabics but not all genuine pieces are signed.

A few of these Inuit art galleries also have sites so you might go shopping and purchase authentic Inuit art sculpture from house throughout the world. In addition to these street retail specialty galleries, there are now credible online galleries that likewise specialize in genuine Inuit art. These online galleries are a excellent option for purchasing Inuit art because the costs are usually lower than those at street retail galleries because of lower overheads. Naturally, like other shopping on the internet, one should beware so when handling an online gallery, ensure that their pieces likewise come with the official Igloo tags to ensure authenticity.

Some traveler stores do carry authentic 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 therefore needs to have some weight or mass to it. An authentic Inuit sculpture is a one of a kind piece of art work and nothing else on the store racks will look precisely like it.

Where it web ends up being more difficult to determine credibility are with the reproductions that are also made from stone. This can be a real gray area to those unfamiliar with authentic Inuit art. They do have mass and may even have some kind of tag indicating that it was handmade but if there are other pieces on the shelves that look too comparable in detail, they are more than likely not genuine. If a seller claims that such as piece is authentic, ask to see the main Igloo tag that comes with it which will know on the artist, place where it was made and the year it was sculpted. Move on if the Igloo tag is not available. The genuine pieces with the accompanying authorities Igloo tags will always be the greatest priced and are typically kept in a different ( possibly even locked) rack within the store.


Since Inuit art has actually been getting more and more global exposure, individuals might be seeing this Canadian fine art type at galleries and museums located outside Canada too. If one is fortunate enough to be taking a trip in the Canadian Arctic where the Inuit live and make their wonderful art work, then it can be securely assumed that any Inuit art piece purchased from a regional northern shop or directly from an Inuit carver would be authentic. Reliable Inuit art galleries are also noted in Inuit Art Quarterly magazine which is dedicated totally to Inuit art. The Inuit sculpture might be signed by the carver either in English or Inuit syllabics but not all authentic pieces are signed. Some of these Inuit art galleries also have sites so you might go shopping and purchase authentic Inuit art sculpture from home anywhere in the world.

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