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



Lots of visitors to Canada will be exposed to Inuit art (Eskimo art) sculptures while touring the country. These are the spectacular handmade sculptures carved from stone by the Inuit artists living 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 locations popular with global visitors such as Banff, Inuit sculptures will be seen at numerous retail shops and showed at some museums. Since Inuit art has actually been getting increasingly more worldwide exposure, individuals may be seeing this Canadian art type at galleries and museums situated outside Canada too. As a result, it will be natural for many travelers and art collectors to decide that they want to buy Inuit sculptures as great souvenirs for their houses or as very special gifts for others. Assuming that the intent is to acquire an genuine piece of Inuit art instead of a inexpensive traveler replica, the concern arises on how does one tell apart the genuine thing from the fakes?

It would be pretty disappointing to bring home a piece only to find out 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 purchased from a regional northern store or directly from an Inuit carver would be genuine. One would have to be more careful in other places in Canada, specifically in traveler areas where all sorts of other Canadian keepsakes such as t-shirts, hockey jerseys, postcards, crucial chains, maple syrup, and other Native Canadian arts are sold.

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

Trusted Inuit art galleries are also listed in Inuit Art Quarterly publication which adheres entirely to Inuit art. These galleries will normally be located in the downtown tourist areas of significant cities. When one walks into these galleries, one will see that there will be only Inuit art and perhaps Native art however none of the other normal traveler souvenirs such as t-shirts or postcards . These galleries will have only authentic Inuit art for sale as they do not deal with imitations or fakes . Just to be even safer, ensure that the piece you have an interest in includes a Canadian federal government Igloo tag licensing that it was handcrafted by a Canadian Inuit artist. The Inuit sculpture might be signed by the carver either in English or Inuit syllabics but not all authentic pieces are signed. So understand that an unsigned piece might still be undoubtedly genuine.

Some of these Inuit art galleries also have sites so you could go shopping and purchase authentic Inuit art sculpture from home throughout the world. In addition to these street retail specialty galleries, there are now respectable online galleries that likewise focus on genuine Inuit art. These online galleries are a great alternative for buying Inuit art because the rates are normally lower than those at street retail galleries because of lower overheads. Of course, like any other shopping on the internet, one must beware so when dealing with an online gallery, ensure that their pieces also include the official Igloo tags to ensure authenticity.

Some tourist stores do carry authentic Inuit art as well as the other touristy keepsakes in order to deal with all types of travelers. When shopping at these kinds of stores, it is possible to differentiate the real pieces from the a fantastic read reproductions. Genuine Inuit sculpture is carved from stone and for that reason must 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 recreation will in some cases have a business name on it such as Wolf Originals or Boma and will never include an artist's signature. An authentic Inuit sculpture is a one of a kind piece of art work and https://www.spokeo.com/Kurt-Criter/Colorado nothing else on the store racks will look exactly like it. If there are duplicates of a certain piece with precise information, the piece is not authentic. If a piece looks too ideal in detail with outright straight bottoms or sides, it is most likely not real. Of course, if a piece features a sticker suggesting that is was made in an Asian nation, then it is obviously a fake. There will also be a big cost distinction in between genuine pieces and the imitations.

Where it becomes more difficult to figure out credibility are with the recreations that are also made from stone. This can be a genuine gray area to those unfamiliar with authentic Inuit art. They do have mass and might even have some type of tag indicating that it was handcrafted however if there are other pieces on the shelves that look too similar in detail, they are more than likely not genuine. If a seller claims that such as piece is genuine, ask to see the official Igloo tag that features it which will have information on the artist, location where it was made and the year it was sculpted. If the Igloo tag is not offered, move on. The authentic pieces with the accompanying official Igloo tags will constantly be the greatest priced and are normally kept in a separate ( possibly even locked) rack within the store.


Given that Inuit art has been getting more and more international exposure, people may be seeing this Canadian fine art form at museums and galleries situated 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 local northern shop or straight from an Inuit carver would be genuine. Reputable Inuit art galleries are also noted in Inuit Art Quarterly publication which is devoted entirely 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 likewise have websites so you could go shopping and buy authentic Inuit art sculpture from house anywhere in the world.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *