Tips on How to Buy and Shop for Genuine Canadian Inuit Art (Eskimo Art) Sculptures
Many visitors to Canada will be exposed to Inuit art (Eskimo art) sculptures while touring the country. Considering that Inuit art has been getting more and more worldwide exposure, individuals might be seeing this Canadian great art kind at galleries and museums located outside Canada too. Presuming that the intention is to obtain an authentic piece of Inuit art rather than a inexpensive traveler replica, the concern emerges on how does one inform 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 genuine or perhaps made in Canada. If one is fortunate enough to be taking a trip in the Canadian Arctic where the Inuit live and make their terrific artwork, then it can be safely assumed that any Inuit art piece bought from a local northern store or directly from an Inuit carver would be authentic. One would have to be more careful elsewhere in Canada, particularly in tourist locations where all sorts of other Canadian keepsakes such as t-shirts, hockey jerseys, postcards, key chains, maple syrup, and other Native Canadian arts are offered.
The best places to shop for Inuit sculptures to make sure credibility are always the trustworthy galleries that focus on Canadian Inuit art and Eskimo art. Some of these galleries have advertisements in the city tourist guides found in hotels.
Reputable Inuit art galleries are also listed in Inuit Art Quarterly magazine which is dedicated totally to Inuit art. When one walks into these galleries, one will see that there will be just Inuit art and perhaps Native art but none of the other normal traveler mementos such as t-shirts or postcards . 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 might go shopping and purchase authentic Inuit art sculpture from home anywhere in the world. In addition to these street retail specialized galleries, there are now reputable online galleries that also specialize in genuine Inuit art.
Some traveler shops this page do bring genuine Inuit art as well as the other touristy souvenirs in order to cater to all types of travelers. Genuine Inuit sculpture is carved from stone and therefore must have some weight or mass to it. An authentic Inuit sculpture is a one of a kind piece of artwork and nothing else on the store racks will look precisely like it.
Where it becomes more difficult to determine 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 might even have some type of tag suggesting that it was handcrafted however if there are other pieces on the shelves that look too similar in detail, they are most likely not genuine. If a seller declares that such as piece is authentic, ask to see the main Igloo tag that features 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 offered. The genuine pieces with the accompanying official Igloo https://www.quora.com/profile/Kurt-Criter tags will always be the greatest priced and are typically kept in a different ( possibly even locked) shelf within the shop.
Considering that Inuit art has actually been getting more and more global direct exposure, Kurt Criter individuals might be seeing this Canadian great art form at galleries and museums located outside Canada too. 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 assumed that any Inuit art piece bought from a regional northern store or straight from an Inuit carver would be genuine. Trusted Inuit art galleries are also noted in Inuit Art Quarterly publication which is dedicated entirely 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 likewise have sites so you could go shopping and purchase authentic Inuit art sculpture from house anywhere in the world.