Tips on How to Purchase and Shop 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 splendid handmade sculptures carved from stone by the Inuit artists residing in the northern Arctic areas of Canada. While in a few of the significant Canadian cities (Toronto, Vancouver, Montreal, Ottawa, and Quebec City) or other traveler areas popular with global visitors such as Banff, Inuit sculptures will be seen at numerous retail stores and displayed at some museums. Considering that Inuit art has actually been getting a growing number of global direct exposure, people might be seeing this Canadian fine art form at galleries and museums situated outside Canada too. As a result, it will be natural for many tourists and art collectors to choose that they wish to buy Inuit sculptures as good mementos for their houses or as really special presents for others. Presuming that the intent is to get an authentic piece of Inuit art instead of a inexpensive tourist replica, the question arises on how does one differentiate the real thing from the fakes?

It would be quite disappointing to bring home a piece only to learn later that it isn't really genuine and even made in Canada. If one is fortunate enough to be traveling in the Canadian Arctic where the Inuit live and make their fantastic art work, then it can be securely assumed that any Inuit art piece purchased 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, particularly in traveler areas where all sorts of other Canadian souvenirs such as tee shirts, hockey jerseys, postcards, key chains, maple syrup, and other Native Canadian arts are offered.

The safest locations to look for Inuit sculptures to ensure credibility are constantly the reputable galleries that focus on Canadian Inuit art and Eskimo art. Some of these galleries have ads in the city tourist guides discovered in hotels.

Respectable Inuit art galleries are also noted in Inuit Art Quarterly magazine which is devoted completely to Inuit art. These galleries will usually be found in the downtown traveler areas of significant cities. 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 . These galleries will have only genuine Inuit art for sale as they do not deal with imitations or phonies . Just to be even safer, ensure that the piece you are interested in includes a Canadian federal government Igloo tag accrediting that it was handcrafted by a Canadian Inuit artist. The Inuit sculpture may be signed you can try this out by the carver either in English or Inuit syllabics however not all authentic pieces are signed. So know that an unsigned piece might still be undoubtedly authentic.

Some of these Inuit art galleries also have websites so you could shop and buy genuine Inuit art sculpture from home anywhere in the world. In addition to these street retail specialized galleries, there are now reliable online galleries that likewise specialize in authentic Inuit art.

Some traveler shops do bring authentic Inuit art along with the other touristy keepsakes in order to cater to all types of travelers. When shopping at these kinds of stores, it is possible to differentiate the real pieces from the reproductions. Authentic Inuit sculpture is carved from stone and therefore should have some weight or mass to it. Stone is also cold to the touch. A recreation made of plastic or resin from a mold will be much lighter in weight and will not be cold to the touch. A reproduction will sometimes have a business name on it such as Wolf Originals or Boma and will never feature an artist's signature. An genuine Inuit sculpture is a one of a kind piece of art work and absolutely nothing else on the shop racks will look precisely like it. If there are duplicates of a certain piece with precise information, the piece is not authentic. It is most likely not real if a piece looks too best in information with absolute straight bottoms or sides. Naturally, if a piece features a sticker label suggesting that is was made in an Asian country, then it is undoubtedly a phony. There will likewise be a huge price distinction between authentic pieces and the imitations.

Where it ends up being harder to identify authenticity are with the reproductions that are likewise made from stone. This can be a real gray area to those not familiar with genuine Inuit art. They do have mass and might even have some kind of tag indicating that it was handcrafted however if there are other pieces on the shelves that look too similar in detail, they are probably not genuine. If a seller claims that such as piece is authentic, 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 sculpted. Move on if the Igloo tag is not readily available. The authentic pieces with the accompanying official Igloo tags will constantly be the highest priced and are generally kept in a separate (perhaps even locked) rack within the shop.


Because Inuit art Kurt Criter has actually been getting more and more worldwide exposure, individuals may be seeing this Canadian fine art kind at museums and galleries situated outside Canada too. If one is lucky enough to be taking a trip in the Canadian Arctic where the Inuit live and make their terrific art work, then it can be securely assumed that any Inuit art piece purchased from a regional northern store or directly from an Inuit carver would be genuine. Credible Inuit art galleries are also listed in Inuit Art Quarterly publication which is devoted entirely to Inuit art. 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 purchase authentic Inuit art sculpture from house anywhere in the world.

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