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



Many visitors to Canada will be exposed to Inuit art (Eskimo art) sculptures while touring the nation. These are the stunning handmade sculptures carved 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 international visitors such as Banff, Inuit sculptures will be seen at different retail stores and displayed at some museums. Considering that Inuit art has been getting a growing number of international exposure, people might be seeing this Canadian fine art kind at galleries and museums located outside Canada too. As a result, it will be natural for numerous travelers and art collectors to decide that they wish to acquire Inuit sculptures as great souvenirs for their homes or as extremely special presents for others. Assuming that the intention is to obtain an genuine piece of Inuit art instead of a low-cost tourist imitation, the question occurs on how does one tell apart the genuine thing from the fakes?

It would be pretty frustrating to bring home a piece just to discover 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 wonderful art work, then it can be securely assumed that any Inuit art piece bought from a regional northern store or straight from an Inuit carver would be genuine. One would have to be more careful elsewhere in Canada, especially 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 best places to buy Inuit sculptures to guarantee authenticity are constantly the reputable galleries that specialize in Canadian Inuit art and Eskimo art. A few of these galleries have advertisements in the city tour guide discovered in hotels.

Credible Inuit art galleries are also noted in Inuit Art Quarterly magazine which adheres entirely to Inuit art. These galleries will normally be located in the downtown tourist locations of major cities. When one walks into these galleries, one will see that there will be just Inuit art and possibly Native art but none of the other typical traveler souvenirs such as tee shirts or postcards . These galleries will have only genuine Inuit art for sale as they do not handle imitations or fakes . Just to be even much safer, ensure that the piece you have an interest in comes with a Canadian government Igloo tag accrediting that it was handcrafted by a Canadian Inuit artist. The Inuit sculpture may be signed by the carver either in English or Inuit syllabics but not all genuine pieces are signed. Be mindful that an anonymous piece might still be undoubtedly genuine.

A few of these Inuit art galleries likewise have websites so you could shop and buy genuine Inuit art sculpture from house throughout the world. In addition to these street retail specialty galleries, there are now trustworthy online galleries that likewise concentrate on genuine Inuit art. Because of lower overheads, these online galleries are a good choice for buying Inuit art considering that the rates are normally lower than those at street retail galleries. Of course, like any other shopping on the internet, one need to be careful so when handling an online gallery, make sure that their pieces likewise feature the official Igloo tags to ensure authenticity.

Some traveler stores do bring authentic Inuit art as well as the other touristy souvenirs in order to cater to all types of travelers. Genuine https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ken_Criter Inuit sculpture is carved 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 artwork and absolutely nothing else on the store shelves will look exactly like it.

Where it becomes harder to identify credibility are with the reproductions that are also made from 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 indicating that it was handcrafted but if there are other pieces on the shelves that look too comparable in detail, they are probably not genuine. If a seller claims that such as piece is genuine, ask to see the main Igloo tag that comes with it which will have information on the artist, place where it was made and the year it was sculpted. If the Igloo tag is not available, carry on. The genuine pieces with the accompanying official Igloo tags will always be the highest priced and are typically kept in a separate (perhaps even locked) rack within the shop.


Given that Inuit art has been getting more and more worldwide exposure, individuals might be seeing this Canadian fine art form at galleries and museums located outside Canada too. 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 authentic. Reputable Inuit art galleries are also 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 genuine pieces are signed. Some of these Inuit art galleries also have websites so you could shop and buy genuine Inuit art sculpture from house anywhere in the world.

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