Tips on How to Buy 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 country. These are the magnificent handmade sculptures sculpted from stone by the Inuit artists residing in the northern Arctic areas of Canada. While in some of the major 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 different retail stores and showed at some museums. Since Inuit art has been getting increasingly more global direct exposure, individuals may be seeing this Canadian fine art type at galleries and museums located outside Canada too. As a result, it will be natural for numerous tourists and art collectors to decide that they want to purchase Inuit sculptures as great souvenirs for their houses or as very unique gifts for others. Presuming that the intent is to acquire an genuine piece of Inuit art rather than a inexpensive tourist imitation, the concern occurs on how does one differentiate the real thing from the phonies?

It would be quite disappointing to bring home a piece only to learn later on that it isn't really authentic or even made in Canada. If one is lucky enough to be taking a trip in the Canadian Arctic where the Inuit live and make their terrific artwork, then it can be securely assumed that any Inuit art piece purchased from a regional northern store or straight from an Inuit carver would be genuine. One would have to be more mindful somewhere else in Canada, particularly in tourist locations where all sorts of other Canadian mementos 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 make sure authenticity are constantly the reliable galleries that concentrate on Canadian Inuit art and Eskimo art. A few of these galleries have advertisements in the city tour guide found in hotels.

Respectable Inuit art galleries are also listed in Inuit Art Quarterly magazine which is dedicated totally to Inuit art. When one strolls into these galleries, one will see that there will be just Inuit art and maybe Native art but none of the other usual traveler keepsakes such as postcards or t-shirts . The Inuit sculpture may be signed by the carver either in English or Inuit syllabics but not all authentic pieces are signed. Kurt Criter

A few of these Inuit art galleries also have websites so you could shop and buy authentic Inuit art sculpture from house throughout the world. In addition to these street retail specialty galleries, there are now reputable online galleries that likewise focus on authentic Inuit art. These online galleries are a good alternative for buying Inuit art because the prices are generally lower than those at street retail galleries because of lower overheads. Obviously, 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 guarantee authenticity.

Some traveler her explanation stores do bring authentic Inuit art as well as the other touristy souvenirs in order to cater to all types of travelers. Genuine Inuit sculpture is sculpted from stone and for that reason should have some weight or mass to it. An genuine Inuit sculpture is a one of a kind piece of artwork and nothing else on the store shelves will look exactly like it.

Where it becomes harder to determine credibility are with the reproductions that are likewise 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 showing that it was handmade however if there are other pieces on the shelves that look too similar in detail, they are more than likely not authentic. 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, area where it was made and the year it was carved. Move on if the Igloo tag is not readily available. The genuine pieces with the accompanying official Igloo tags will Kurt Criter Denver constantly be the highest priced and are typically kept in a different ( possibly even locked) rack within the store.


Considering that Inuit art has been getting more and more international exposure, individuals may be seeing this Canadian fine art type at galleries and museums situated outside Canada too. If one is lucky enough to be traveling 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 acquired from a local northern store or straight from an Inuit carver would be genuine. Trusted Inuit art galleries are also listed in Inuit Art Quarterly publication which is devoted totally 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 sites so you might go shopping and buy genuine Inuit art sculpture from home anywhere in the world.

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