Tips on How to Buy and Look For Genuine Canadian Inuit Art (Eskimo Art) Sculptures
Lots of visitors to Canada will be exposed to Inuit art (Eskimo art) sculptures while exploring the country. These are the spectacular handmade sculptures carved from stone by the Inuit artists residing in the northern Arctic regions of Canada. While in some of the major Canadian cities (Toronto, Vancouver, Montreal, Ottawa, and Quebec City) or other tourist locations popular with worldwide visitors such as Banff, Inuit sculptures will be seen at numerous retail shops and showed at some museums. Because Inuit art has been getting increasingly more international exposure, people may be seeing this Canadian art form at museums and galleries located outside Canada too. As a result, it will be natural for numerous travelers and art collectors to choose that they would like to purchase Inuit sculptures as nice mementos for their homes or as extremely distinct presents for others. Presuming that the intent is to acquire an authentic piece of Inuit art rather than a cheap traveler imitation, the question arises on how does one differentiate the real thing from the fakes?
It would be pretty frustrating to bring home a piece just to learn later on that it isn't really authentic and even made in Canada. If one is fortunate enough to be traveling in the Canadian Arctic where the Inuit live and make their fantastic artwork, then it can be safely presumed 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 mindful somewhere else in Canada, specifically in traveler locations where all sorts of other Canadian souvenirs such as t-shirts, hockey jerseys, postcards, crucial chains, maple syrup, and other Native Canadian arts are offered.
The safest places to purchase Inuit sculptures to guarantee credibility are always the respectable galleries that focus on Canadian Inuit art and Eskimo art. Some of these galleries have advertisements in the city tour guide found in hotels.
Trusted Inuit art galleries are also noted in Inuit Art Quarterly magazine which is devoted totally to Inuit art. These galleries will usually be found 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 normal tourist keepsakes such as t-shirts or postcards . These galleries will have just authentic Inuit art for sale as they do not deal with phonies or replicas . Just to be even more secure, make certain that the piece you have an interest in features a Canadian government Igloo tag licensing that it was handcrafted 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. So know that an anonymous piece might still be certainly genuine.
Some of these Inuit art galleries also have sites so you could shop and purchase authentic Inuit art sculpture from home throughout the world. In addition to these street retail specialized galleries, there are now credible online galleries that also specialize in genuine Inuit art. Because of lower overheads, these online galleries are a excellent choice for purchasing Inuit art considering that the rates are typically lower than those at street retail galleries. Obviously, like any other shopping on the internet, one should beware so when dealing with an online gallery, ensure that their pieces also include the main Igloo tags to ensure credibility.
Some traveler shops do carry genuine Inuit art as well as the other touristy souvenirs in order to cater to all types of travelers. Authentic Inuit sculpture is carved from stone and therefore ought 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.
This can be a genuine gray location to those unknown with genuine Inuit art. If a seller declares that such as piece is genuine, ask to see the official Igloo tag that comes with it which will have info on the artist, location where it was made and the year it was sculpted. The genuine pieces with the accompanying official Igloo tags will always be the greatest priced and are usually kept in a different ( maybe even locked) rack within the shop.
Considering that Inuit art has actually been getting more and more international exposure, people may be seeing this Canadian fine art form at museums and galleries located outside Canada too. If one is lucky 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 presumed that any Inuit art piece bought from Kurt Criter Denver a regional northern store or directly from an Inuit carver would be genuine. Trusted Inuit art galleries are also listed in Inuit Art Quarterly publication which is dedicated 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 websites so you could shop and purchase authentic Inuit art sculpture from house anywhere in the world.