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 nation. Given that Inuit art has actually been getting more and more global exposure, people may be seeing this Canadian fine art form at galleries and museums located outside Canada too. Assuming that the intention is to acquire an authentic piece of Inuit art rather than a low-cost tourist imitation, the question occurs on how does one tell apart the real thing from the fakes?
It would be quite frustrating to bring home a piece only to discover later that it isn't genuine or perhaps made in Canada. If one is lucky enough to be traveling in the Canadian Arctic where the Inuit live and make their wonderful art work, then it can be safely assumed that any Inuit art piece purchased from a local northern shop or straight from an Inuit carver would be genuine. One would have to be more careful in other places in Canada, particularly in tourist locations where all sorts of other Canadian mementos such as t-shirts, hockey jerseys, postcards, key chains, maple syrup, and other Native Canadian arts are offered.
The safest places to purchase Inuit sculptures to make sure authenticity are constantly the reliable galleries that specialize in Canadian Inuit art and Eskimo art. Some of these galleries have ads in the city tour guide found in hotels.
Reputable Inuit art galleries are also noted in Inuit Art Quarterly magazine which is dedicated totally to Inuit art. When one walks into these galleries, one will see that there will be only Inuit art and possibly Native art but none of the other normal tourist souvenirs such as tee shirts or postcards . The Inuit sculpture might be signed by the carver either in English or Inuit syllabics but not all authentic pieces are signed.
A few of these Inuit investigate this site art galleries likewise have sites so you might shop and purchase genuine Inuit art sculpture from home anywhere in the world. In addition to these street retail specialized galleries, there are now respectable online galleries that also focus on genuine Inuit art. Since of lower overheads, these online galleries are a good alternative for buying Inuit art since the prices are usually lower than those at street retail galleries. Naturally, like other shopping on the internet, one need to be careful so when handling an online gallery, make sure that their pieces also feature the main Igloo tags to guarantee authenticity.
Some traveler shops do carry authentic 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 must have some weight or mass to it. An authentic Inuit sculpture is a one of a kind piece of artwork and nothing else on the shop racks will look precisely like it.
Where it becomes harder to figure out authenticity are with the recreations that are also made of stone. This can be a real gray area to those unfamiliar 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 genuine. If a seller declares that such as piece is authentic, ask to see the official Igloo tag that comes with it which will know on the artist, place where it was made and the year it was sculpted. Move on if the Igloo tag is not available. The genuine pieces with the accompanying official Igloo tags will always be the greatest priced and are normally kept in a separate ( maybe even locked) shelf within the store.
Considering that Inuit art has been getting more and more international direct exposure, people might be seeing this Canadian fine art type at galleries and museums situated 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 artwork, then it can be securely presumed that any Inuit art piece bought from a regional northern shop or straight from an Inuit carver would be genuine. Trustworthy Inuit art galleries are also listed in Inuit Art Quarterly magazine which is devoted completely to Inuit art. The Inuit sculpture might be signed by the carver either in English or Inuit syllabics but not all authentic pieces are signed. Some of these Inuit art galleries also have websites so you could go shopping and buy genuine Inuit art sculpture from home anywhere in the world.