Tips on How to Buy and Buy Authentic Canadian Inuit Art (Eskimo Art) Sculptures
Many visitors to Canada will be exposed to Inuit art (Eskimo art) sculptures while visiting the country. These are the spectacular handmade sculptures carved 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 tourist areas popular with worldwide visitors such as Banff, Inuit sculptures will be seen at different retail stores and displayed at some museums. Because Inuit art has been getting a growing number of worldwide exposure, individuals may be seeing this Canadian fine art form 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 good keepsakes for their houses or as really unique presents for others. Presuming that the objective is to get an authentic piece of Inuit art rather than a cheap traveler imitation, the concern arises on how does one tell apart the real thing from the phonies?
It would be quite disappointing to bring home a piece just to learn later on that it isn't authentic or even made in Canada. If one is fortunate enough to be traveling in the Canadian Arctic where the Inuit live and make their wonderful art work, then it can be safely assumed that any Inuit art piece bought from a local northern store or straight from an Inuit carver would be genuine. One would have to be more mindful in other places in Canada, especially in traveler areas where all sorts of other Canadian mementos such as t-shirts, hockey jerseys, postcards, crucial chains, maple syrup, and other Native Canadian arts are offered.
The best locations to buy Inuit sculptures to guarantee credibility are constantly the trusted galleries that specialize in Canadian Inuit art and Eskimo art. A few of these galleries have advertisements in the city tourist guides discovered in hotels.
Reliable Inuit art galleries are also listed in Inuit Art Quarterly publication which is devoted completely to Inuit art. When one walks into these galleries, one will see that there will be only Inuit art and possibly Native art but none of the other typical tourist souvenirs such as postcards or tee shirts . 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 websites so you could shop and buy genuine Inuit art sculpture from house anywhere in the world. In addition to these street retail specialized galleries, there are now reliable online galleries that also specialize in genuine Inuit art.
Some traveler stores do bring authentic Inuit art as well as the other touristy keepsakes in order to cater to all types of travelers. Authentic Inuit sculpture is carved from stone and for that reason needs to have some weight or mass to it. An authentic Inuit sculpture is a one of a kind piece of art work and nothing else on the store racks will look exactly like it.
Where it becomes harder to figure out authenticity are with the recreations 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 showing that it was handmade but if there are other pieces on the shelves that look too comparable in detail, they are more than likely not authentic. https://medium.com/@kurtcriter If a seller declares that such as piece is genuine, ask to see the official Igloo tag that comes with it which will have information on the artist, location where it was made and the year it was carved. If the Igloo tag is not available, proceed. The genuine pieces with the accompanying official Igloo tags will always be the highest priced and are usually kept in a separate ( maybe even locked) rack within the store.
Since Inuit art has been getting more and more global direct exposure, individuals may be seeing this Canadian fine art kind at museums and galleries located 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 safely presumed that any Inuit art piece purchased from a regional northern store or straight from an Inuit carver would be genuine. Trustworthy Inuit art galleries are likewise noted in Inuit Art Quarterly magazine which is dedicated entirely 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 also have sites so you might shop and purchase authentic Inuit art sculpture from home anywhere in the world.