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 visiting the nation. These are the spectacular handmade sculptures sculpted from stone by the Inuit artists living in the northern Arctic regions 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 numerous retail shops and displayed at some museums. Since Inuit art has actually been getting increasingly more international exposure, individuals may be seeing this Canadian art kind at museums and galleries situated outside Canada too. As a result, it will be natural for lots of tourists and art collectors to choose that they wish to buy Inuit sculptures as great mementos for their houses or as extremely unique presents for others. Assuming that the objective is to acquire an authentic piece of Inuit art rather than a low-cost tourist imitation, the concern arises on how does one differentiate the genuine thing from the fakes?
It would be pretty frustrating to bring home a piece just to learn later on that it isn't authentic 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 art work, then it can be safely assumed that any Inuit art piece purchased from a regional northern shop or directly from an Inuit carver would be authentic. One would need to be more careful in other places in Canada, particularly in tourist areas where all sorts of other Canadian souvenirs such as t-shirts, hockey jerseys, postcards, key chains, maple syrup, and other Native Canadian arts are sold.
The most safe places to purchase Inuit sculptures to ensure authenticity are always the respectable galleries that specialize in Canadian Inuit art and Eskimo art. A few of these galleries have advertisements in the city tourist guides found in hotels.
Trusted Inuit art galleries are also noted in Inuit Art Quarterly publication which is devoted entirely to Inuit art. These galleries will generally 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 perhaps Native art however none of the other usual tourist keepsakes such as postcards or tee shirts . These galleries will have only genuine Inuit art for sale as they do not handle phonies or imitations . Just to be even more secure, make sure that the piece you have an interest in includes a Canadian federal government Igloo tag accrediting that it was handmade by a Canadian Inuit artist. The Inuit sculpture may be signed by the carver either in English or Inuit syllabics but not all authentic pieces are signed. Be mindful that an unsigned piece might still be certainly authentic.
Some of these Inuit art galleries also have websites so you might shop and purchase authentic Inuit art sculpture from house anywhere in the world. In addition to these street retail specialty galleries, there are now trustworthy online galleries that also specialize in genuine Inuit art. These online galleries are a excellent choice for purchasing Inuit art considering that the prices are typically lower than those at street retail galleries because of lower overheads. Of course, like any other shopping on the internet, one must be careful so when dealing with an online gallery, ensure that their pieces also come with the official Igloo tags to ensure authenticity.
Some tourist shops do carry authentic Inuit art along with the other touristy keepsakes in order to cater to all kinds of travelers. When shopping at these kinds of stores, it is possible to differentiate the genuine pieces from the reproductions. Authentic Inuit sculpture is carved from stone and therefore needs to have some weight or mass to it. Stone is also cold to the touch. A reproduction made of plastic or resin from a mold will be much lighter in weight and will not be cold to the touch. A reproduction will sometimes have a business name on it such as Wolf Originals or Boma and will never include an artist's signature. An genuine Inuit sculpture is a one of a kind piece of art work and nothing else on the shop racks will look exactly like it. The piece is not authentic if there are duplicates of a particular piece with specific details. It is probably not genuine if a piece looks too best in information with absolute straight bottoms or sides. Naturally, if a piece includes a sticker label showing that is was made in an Asian country, then it is obviously a phony. There will also be a substantial cost distinction between authentic pieces and the imitations.
This can be a genuine gray location to those unknown with authentic Inuit art. If a seller declares that such as piece is authentic, ask to see the main Igloo tag that Kurt Criter comes with it which will have details on the artist, location where it was made and the year it was carved. The authentic pieces with the accompanying authorities Igloo tags will always be the greatest priced and are generally kept in a different ( maybe even locked) shelf within the shop.
Since Inuit art has been getting more and more worldwide exposure, people may be seeing this Canadian fine art type 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 terrific artwork, then it can be securely presumed that any Inuit art piece acquired from a local northern shop or straight from an Inuit carver would be genuine. Credible Inuit art galleries are likewise 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 but not all authentic pieces are signed. Some of these Inuit art galleries also have sites so you might shop and buy genuine Inuit art sculpture from house anywhere in the world.