Tips on How 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 nation. These are the stunning handmade sculptures carved from stone by the Inuit artists living in the northern Arctic areas of Canada. While in a few of the significant Canadian cities (Toronto, Vancouver, Montreal, Ottawa, and Quebec City) or other traveler areas popular with global visitors such as Banff, Inuit sculptures will be seen at various retail shops and showed at some museums. Since Inuit art has been getting a growing number of global exposure, people might be seeing this Canadian fine art type at museums and galleries situated outside Canada too. As a result, it will be natural for numerous tourists and art collectors to choose that they would like to buy Inuit sculptures as nice mementos for their homes or as extremely distinct gifts for others. Presuming that the intention is to obtain an authentic piece of Inuit art instead of a cheap tourist replica, the concern emerges on how does one tell apart the real thing from the fakes?

It would be quite frustrating to bring home a piece just to discover later 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 terrific art work, then it can be securely presumed that any Inuit art piece purchased from a regional northern store or straight from an Inuit carver would be authentic. One would need to be more cautious in other places in Canada, particularly in traveler locations where all sorts of other Canadian mementos such as tee shirts, hockey jerseys, postcards, crucial chains, maple syrup, and other Native Canadian arts are sold.

The safest locations to look for Inuit sculptures to ensure credibility are always the credible galleries that focus on Canadian Inuit art and Eskimo art. Some of these galleries have ads in the city tourist guides discovered in hotels.

Respectable Inuit art galleries are also listed in Inuit Art Quarterly publication which is dedicated totally 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 souvenirs such as tee shirts or postcards . The Inuit sculpture might be signed by the carver either in English or Inuit see this website syllabics however not all genuine pieces are signed.

Some of these Inuit art galleries also have websites so you might go shopping and purchase genuine Inuit art sculpture from home throughout the world. In addition to these street retail specialty galleries, there are now respectable online galleries that likewise concentrate on authentic Inuit art. Because of lower overheads, these online galleries are a good choice for buying Inuit art because the costs are normally lower than those at street retail galleries. Obviously, like other shopping on the internet, one must be careful so when handling an online gallery, make sure that their pieces also come with the official Igloo tags to ensure authenticity.

Some traveler shops do bring genuine Inuit art as well as the other touristy mementos in order to cater to all types of travelers. Genuine Inuit sculpture is carved from stone and for that reason must have some weight or mass to it. An visit here authentic Inuit sculpture is a one of a kind piece of art work and absolutely nothing else on the shop shelves will look exactly like it.

Where it becomes harder to determine authenticity are with the reproductions that are also made of stone. This can be a genuine gray area to those unfamiliar with authentic Inuit art. They do have mass and might even have some kind of tag showing that it was handcrafted but if there are other pieces on the shelves that look too similar in detail, they are probably not authentic. If a seller declares that such as piece is genuine, ask to see the main Igloo tag that comes with it which will have information on the artist, area where it was made and the year it was sculpted. If the Igloo tag is not available, proceed. The genuine pieces with the accompanying official Igloo tags will constantly be the highest priced and are usually kept in a different ( maybe even locked) rack within the store.


Considering that Inuit art has actually been getting more and more international exposure, people might 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 fantastic artwork, then it can be securely presumed that any Inuit art piece purchased from a local northern shop or straight from an Inuit carver would be genuine. Credible Inuit art galleries are likewise noted in Inuit Art Quarterly publication which is devoted completely to Inuit art. The Inuit sculpture may be signed by the carver either in English or Inuit syllabics but not all authentic pieces are signed. Some click to read of these Inuit art galleries also have sites so you might shop and purchase genuine Inuit art sculpture from home anywhere in the world.

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