Tips on How to Buy and Look For 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 magnificent handmade sculptures sculpted from stone by the Inuit artists living in the northern Arctic areas of Canada. While in a few of the major Canadian cities (Toronto, Vancouver, Montreal, Ottawa, and Quebec City) or other traveler locations popular with global visitors such as Banff, Inuit sculptures will be seen at various retail stores and displayed at some museums. Considering that Inuit art has actually been getting a growing number of international exposure, people may be seeing this Canadian art kind at galleries and museums located outside Canada too. As a result, it will be natural for lots of tourists and art collectors to decide that they want to buy Inuit sculptures as good souvenirs for their homes or as very unique presents for others. Assuming that the objective is to acquire an authentic piece of Inuit art instead of a low-cost traveler replica, the question occurs on how does one differentiate the genuine thing from the phonies?
It would be quite frustrating to bring home a piece just to find out later that it isn't really genuine or perhaps made in Canada. If one is lucky 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 purchased from a local northern store or directly from an Inuit carver would be authentic. One would need to be more careful in other places in Canada, specifically in tourist locations where all sorts of other Canadian keepsakes such as t-shirts, hockey jerseys, postcards, crucial chains, maple syrup, and other Native Canadian arts are sold.
The most safe places to buy Inuit sculptures to ensure credibility are always the trustworthy galleries that specialize in Canadian Inuit art and Eskimo art. Some of these galleries have ads in the city tourist guides found in hotels.
Trusted Inuit art galleries are likewise listed in Inuit Art Quarterly magazine which is devoted completely to Inuit art. When one walks into these galleries, one will see that there will be only Inuit art and maybe Native art however none of the other typical traveler mementos such as postcards or t-shirts . The Inuit sculpture may be signed by the carver either in English or Inuit syllabics however not all authentic pieces are signed.
A few of these Inuit art galleries also have sites so you could shop and buy authentic Inuit art sculpture from home anywhere in the world. In addition to these street retail specialty galleries, there are now reputable online galleries that also concentrate on authentic Inuit art. These online galleries are a good option for buying Inuit art considering that the rates are typically lower than those at street retail galleries because of lower overheads. Naturally, like any other shopping on the internet, one need to take care so when handling an online gallery, make certain that their pieces likewise include the main Igloo tags to guarantee authenticity.
Some tourist shops do carry genuine Inuit art as well as the other touristy souvenirs in order to cater to all types of tourists. Authentic Inuit sculpture is sculpted from stone and for that reason ought to 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 store racks will look exactly like it.
Where it ends up being more difficult to figure out credibility are with the recreations that are also made from stone. This can be a real gray area to those not familiar with authentic Inuit art. They do have mass and may even have some type of tag showing that it was handmade but if there are other pieces on the shelves that this link look too similar in detail, they are probably not genuine. If a seller claims that such as piece is authentic, ask to see the official Igloo tag that comes with it which will know on the artist, location where it was made and the year it was sculpted. If the Igloo tag is not available, carry on. The genuine pieces with the accompanying authorities Igloo tags will always be the highest priced and are typically kept in a different ( maybe even locked) shelf within the shop.
Because Inuit art has been getting more and more international direct exposure, individuals might be seeing this Canadian great art kind 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 fantastic artwork, then it can be securely presumed that any Inuit art piece purchased from a regional northern shop or straight from an Inuit carver would be genuine. Trustworthy Inuit art galleries are also 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 however not all genuine pieces are signed. Some of these Inuit art galleries likewise have sites so you could shop and purchase genuine Inuit art sculpture from home anywhere in the world.