Tips on How to Purchase and Purchase 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 splendid handmade sculptures carved from stone by the Inuit artists living in the northern Arctic areas of Canada. While in some of the significant Canadian cities (Toronto, Vancouver, Montreal, Ottawa, and Quebec City) or other tourist locations popular with international visitors such as Banff, Inuit sculptures will be seen at different retail shops and showed at some museums. Since Inuit art has been getting more and more global direct 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 tourists and art collectors to choose that they want to acquire Inuit sculptures as good keepsakes for their homes or as very distinct presents for others. Assuming that the intent is to obtain an genuine piece of Inuit art instead of a inexpensive tourist replica, the question emerges on how does one tell apart the genuine thing from the phonies?
It would be pretty disappointing to bring home a piece just to find out later that it isn't authentic and even made in Canada. If one is lucky enough to be traveling 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 directly from an Inuit carver would be genuine. One would have to be more careful somewhere else in Canada, especially in traveler locations where all sorts of other Canadian keepsakes such as tee shirts, hockey jerseys, postcards, key chains, maple syrup, and other Native Canadian arts are sold.
The most safe locations to shop for Inuit sculptures to ensure credibility are always the trusted galleries that focus on Canadian Inuit art and Eskimo art. A few of these galleries have advertisements in the city tourist guides discovered in hotels.
Trustworthy 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 only Inuit art and perhaps Native art but none of the other typical tourist souvenirs such as tee shirts or postcards . The Inuit sculpture may be signed by the carver either in English or Inuit syllabics but not all authentic pieces are signed.
Some of these Inuit art galleries also have sites so you might shop and purchase genuine Inuit art sculpture from house anywhere in the world. In addition to these street retail specialty galleries, there are now respectable online galleries that also specialize in authentic Inuit art.
Some tourist stores do bring genuine Inuit art as well as the other touristy keepsakes in order to cater to all types of travelers. i loved this Authentic Inuit sculpture is carved from stone and therefore must have some weight or mass to it. 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.
This can be a real gray area to those unknown with authentic Inuit art. If a seller claims that such as piece is genuine, ask to see the official Igloo tag that comes with it which will have information on the artist, area where it was made and the year it was sculpted. The authentic pieces with the accompanying authorities Igloo tags will always be the highest priced and are generally kept in a different ( possibly even locked) shelf within the shop.
Given that Inuit art has been getting more and more international direct exposure, people might be seeing this Canadian fine art form at museums and galleries 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 wonderful art work, then it can be safely presumed 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 noted in Inuit Art Quarterly publication which is dedicated totally to Inuit art. The Inuit sculpture may 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 websites so you could go shopping and buy genuine Inuit art sculpture from home anywhere in the world.