Tips on Ways To Buy and Look For Authentic Canadian Inuit Art (Eskimo Art) Sculptures



Many visitors to Canada will be exposed to Inuit art (Eskimo art) sculptures while visiting the country. These are the magnificent handmade sculptures sculpted from stone by the Inuit artists residing in the northern Arctic areas 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 various retail stores and displayed at some museums. Because Inuit art has been getting more and more worldwide exposure, people might be seeing this Canadian art type at museums and galleries situated outside Canada too. As a result, it will be natural for numerous tourists and art collectors to decide that they would like to buy Inuit sculptures as nice mementos for their homes or as very special gifts for others. Presuming that the objective is to acquire an authentic piece of Inuit art rather than a cheap tourist imitation, the concern emerges on how does one differentiate the real thing from the fakes?

It would be quite frustrating to bring home a piece just to discover later on that it isn't really authentic or perhaps made in Canada. If one is lucky enough to be traveling in the Canadian Arctic where the Inuit live and make their fantastic art work, then it can be safely presumed that any Inuit art piece bought from a local northern shop or directly from an Inuit carver would be genuine. One would need to be more cautious somewhere else in Canada, especially 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 places to purchase Inuit sculptures to guarantee authenticity are constantly the credible galleries that specialize in Canadian Inuit art and Eskimo art. A few of these galleries have ads in the city tour guide found in hotels.

Credible Inuit art galleries are also listed in Inuit Art Quarterly publication which is dedicated totally to Inuit art. When one walks into these galleries, one will see that there will be just Inuit art and maybe Native art but none of the other usual tourist mementos such as postcards or t-shirts . 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 likewise have websites so you could go shopping and buy genuine Inuit art sculpture from home anywhere in the world. In addition to these street retail specialty galleries, there are now reliable online galleries that also focus on genuine Inuit art. These online galleries are a great alternative for buying Inuit art because the rates are typically lower than those at street retail galleries because of click resources lower overheads. Naturally, Learn More like any other shopping on the internet, one must take care so when handling an online gallery, make certain that their pieces also feature the official Igloo tags to make sure authenticity.

Some traveler stores do carry authentic Inuit art as well as the other touristy mementos in order to cater to all types of travelers. Authentic Inuit sculpture is sculpted from stone and therefore ought to have some weight or mass to it. An authentic Inuit sculpture is a one of a kind piece of art work and absolutely nothing else on the store shelves will look precisely like it.

Where it ends up being harder to identify authenticity 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 showing that it was handcrafted however if there are other pieces on the shelves that look too similar in detail, they are probably not authentic. If a seller declares that such as piece is authentic, ask to see the official Igloo tag that features it which will have information on the artist, area where it was made and the year it was sculpted. Move on if the Igloo tag is not offered. The genuine pieces with the accompanying authorities Igloo tags will constantly be the highest priced and are usually kept in a separate ( maybe even locked) rack within the shop.


Considering that Inuit art has actually been getting more and more worldwide 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 fantastic art work, then it can be safely assumed that any Inuit art piece bought from a regional northern store or directly from an Inuit carver would be genuine. Reliable Inuit art galleries are likewise listed in Inuit Art Quarterly magazine which is devoted completely to Inuit art. The Inuit sculpture might be signed by the carver either in English or Inuit syllabics however not all authentic pieces are signed. Some of these Inuit art galleries also have sites so you could shop and purchase genuine Inuit art sculpture from home anywhere in the world.

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