Tips on Ways 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 exploring the country. Given that Inuit art has been getting more and more international direct exposure, individuals might be seeing this Canadian fine art type at museums and galleries located outside Canada too. Presuming that the intent is to get an genuine piece of Inuit art rather than a low-cost tourist replica, the concern occurs on how does one tell apart the real thing from the phonies?
It would be quite disappointing to bring home a piece only to learn later that it isn't really genuine or even made in Canada. If one is fortunate enough to be taking a trip in the Canadian Arctic where the Inuit live and make their wonderful art work, then it can be safely presumed that any Inuit art piece bought from a regional northern shop or directly from an Inuit carver would be authentic. One would have to be more careful in other places 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 offered.
The most safe places to shop for Inuit sculptures to guarantee authenticity are always the reliable galleries that focus on Canadian Inuit art and Eskimo art. A few of these galleries have ads in the city tourist guides found in hotels.
Reliable Inuit art galleries are likewise listed in Inuit Art Quarterly publication which is devoted completely to Inuit art. These galleries will usually be located in the downtown traveler locations of major cities. When one walks into these galleries, one will see that there will be just Inuit art and possibly Native art but none of the other normal traveler keepsakes such as postcards or tee shirts . These galleries will have only genuine Inuit art for sale as they do not handle imitations or phonies . Simply 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 however not all authentic pieces are signed. So be aware that an anonymous piece may still be certainly authentic.
A few of these Inuit art galleries also have sites so you might shop and purchase genuine Inuit art sculpture from home throughout the world. In addition to these street retail specialized galleries, there are now trustworthy online galleries that also focus on authentic Inuit art. Because 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 other shopping on the internet, one must beware so when handling an online gallery, make sure that their pieces also come with the official Igloo tags to ensure authenticity.
Some tourist shops do carry authentic Inuit art as well as the other touristy mementos in order to cater to all types of travelers. Authentic Inuit sculpture is carved from stone and therefore must have some weight or mass to it. An genuine Inuit sculpture is a one of a kind piece of artwork and nothing else on the store racks will look precisely like it.
This Kurt Criter can be a genuine gray area to those unknown with authentic Inuit art. If a seller declares that such as piece is authentic, ask to see the main Igloo tag that comes with it which will have details on the artist, location where it was made and the year it was sculpted. The authentic pieces with the accompanying authorities Igloo tags will always be the greatest priced and are normally kept in a separate ( maybe even locked) shelf within the store.
Since Inuit art has actually been getting more and more international direct exposure, people might be seeing this Canadian fine art kind at museums and galleries located outside Canada too. If one is fortunate enough to be taking a trip in the Canadian Arctic where the Inuit live and make their terrific artwork, then it can be securely presumed that any Inuit art piece purchased from a regional northern shop or directly from an Inuit carver would be authentic. Trustworthy Inuit art galleries are also listed in Inuit Art Quarterly publication which is dedicated entirely to Inuit art. The Inuit sculpture may 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 go shopping and purchase genuine Inuit art sculpture from house anywhere in the world.