Tips on The Best Ways 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 exploring the country. These are the magnificent handmade sculptures sculpted from stone by the Inuit artists living in the northern Arctic regions of Canada. While in some of the significant Canadian cities (Toronto, Vancouver, Montreal, Ottawa, and Quebec City) or other tourist areas popular with international visitors such as Banff, Inuit sculptures will be seen at various retail shops and displayed at some museums. Because Inuit art has been getting more and more worldwide exposure, individuals may be seeing this Canadian fine art kind at museums and galleries situated outside Canada too. As a result, it will be natural for numerous tourists and art collectors to decide that they wish to purchase Inuit sculptures as great keepsakes for their homes or as very special gifts for others. Presuming that the intent is to obtain an genuine piece of Inuit art rather than a cheap tourist imitation, the concern develops on how does one differentiate the genuine thing from the fakes?
It would be pretty disappointing to bring home a piece just to learn later that it isn't really authentic or 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 terrific artwork, then it can be safely assumed that any Inuit art piece purchased from a regional northern store or straight from an Inuit carver would be authentic. One would have to be more careful elsewhere in Canada, particularly in tourist areas 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 places to shop for Inuit sculptures to make sure authenticity are constantly the trustworthy galleries that specialize in Canadian Inuit art and Eskimo art. A few of these galleries have ads in the city tour guide discovered in hotels.
Trusted Inuit art galleries are also listed in Inuit Art Quarterly publication which adheres entirely to Inuit art. These galleries will typically be found in the downtown tourist locations of significant cities. When one strolls into these galleries, one will see that there will be just Inuit art and possibly Native art however none of the other normal traveler souvenirs such as postcards or t-shirts . These galleries will have just authentic Inuit art for sale as they do not handle phonies or replicas . Simply to be even much safer, ensure that the piece you are interested in includes a Canadian government Igloo tag certifying that it was handmade by a Canadian Inuit artist. The Inuit sculpture might be signed by the carver either in English or Inuit syllabics but not all authentic pieces are signed. So know that an anonymous piece may still be undoubtedly authentic.
Some of these Inuit art galleries also have sites 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 trusted online galleries that likewise specialize in genuine Inuit art.
Some tourist stores do bring genuine Inuit art as well as the other touristy souvenirs in order to cater to all types of travelers. Authentic Inuit sculpture is sculpted from stone and therefore must have some weight or mass to it. An authentic 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.
Where it becomes more difficult to identify credibility are with the reproductions that are also made of stone. This can be a genuine gray area to those not familiar with authentic Inuit art. They do have mass and might even have some type of tag suggesting that it was handmade however if there are other pieces on the shelves that look too similar in detail, they are probably not authentic. If a seller claims that such as piece is genuine, ask to see the main Igloo tag that includes it which will have information on the artist, location where it was made and the year it was carved. Move on if the Igloo tag is not available. The authentic pieces with the accompanying authorities Igloo tags will constantly be the highest priced and are normally kept in a different (perhaps even locked) rack within the shop.
Considering that Inuit art has been getting more and more worldwide direct exposure, individuals may be seeing this Canadian great art form at museums and galleries situated outside Canada too. If one is fortunate enough to be traveling in the Canadian Arctic where the Inuit live and make their fantastic art work, then it can be securely presumed that any Inuit art piece purchased from a local northern store or straight from an Inuit carver would be genuine. Trusted Inuit art galleries are also noted in Inuit Art Quarterly magazine which Kurt Criter Denver is dedicated completely 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 sites so you could go shopping and buy authentic Inuit art sculpture from house anywhere in the world.