Tips on How to Buy and Shop for Genuine Canadian Inuit Art (Eskimo Art) Sculptures
Many visitors to Canada will be exposed to Inuit art (Eskimo art) sculptures while visiting the nation. Because Inuit art has been getting more and more international direct exposure, people might be seeing this Canadian fine art kind at galleries and museums situated outside Canada too. Presuming that the objective is to get an authentic piece of Inuit art rather than a inexpensive tourist replica, the question develops on how does one inform apart the genuine thing from the phonies?
It would be quite disappointing to bring home a piece just to find out later that it isn't really genuine and 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 wonderful artwork, then it can be safely presumed that any Inuit art piece bought from a regional northern shop or straight from an Inuit carver would be genuine. One would have to be more careful elsewhere in Canada, especially in traveler locations 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 locations to purchase Inuit sculptures to guarantee authenticity are constantly the credible galleries that specialize in Canadian Inuit art and Eskimo art. Some of these galleries have ads in the city tour guide discovered in hotels.
Trusted Inuit art galleries are also noted in Inuit Art Quarterly magazine which is devoted entirely to Inuit art. When one walks into these galleries, one will see that there will be only Inuit art and perhaps Native art however none of the other typical tourist mementos 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 likewise have sites so you might go shopping and buy authentic Inuit art sculpture from home throughout the world. In addition to these street retail specialized galleries, there are now reputable online galleries that also focus on authentic Inuit art. Since of lower overheads, these online galleries are a good option for buying Inuit art given that the prices are typically lower than those at street retail galleries. Naturally, like any other shopping on the internet, one need to beware so when handling an online gallery, make sure that their pieces likewise feature the official Igloo tags to ensure authenticity.
Some traveler 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 therefore should have some weight or mass to it. An authentic Inuit sculpture is a one of a kind piece of artwork and absolutely nothing else on the shop racks will look exactly like it.
Where it becomes harder to determine 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 may even have some type of tag showing that it was handcrafted however if there are other pieces on the shelves that look too similar in detail, they are most likely not genuine. If a seller declares that such as piece is authentic, ask to see the main Igloo tag that includes it which will know on the artist, place where it was made and the year it was carved. Move on if the Igloo tag is not offered. The authentic pieces with the accompanying authorities Igloo tags will always be the highest priced and are usually kept in a separate ( possibly even Kurt Criter Denver locked) shelf within the store.
Considering that Inuit art has actually been getting more and more international direct exposure, individuals may be seeing this Canadian great art kind at museums and galleries located outside Canada too. If one is lucky enough to be traveling in the go to my blog Canadian Arctic where the Inuit live and make their fantastic art work, then it can be securely assumed that any Inuit art piece bought from a regional northern store or directly from an Inuit carver would be authentic. Credible Inuit art galleries are likewise noted in Inuit Art Quarterly magazine which is dedicated totally to Inuit art. The Inuit sculpture might 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 websites so you could shop and buy authentic Inuit art sculpture from home anywhere in the world.