Tips on Ways To Purchase and Shop 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 sculpted from stone by the Inuit artists living in the northern Arctic regions 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 displayed at some museums. Considering that Inuit art has actually been getting a growing number of worldwide direct exposure, individuals might be seeing this Canadian fine art kind at museums and galleries located outside Canada too. As a result, it will be natural for numerous travelers and art collectors to decide that they want to purchase Inuit sculptures as good mementos for their houses or as really unique presents for others. Assuming that the objective is to acquire an authentic piece of Inuit art instead of a low-cost tourist imitation, the concern occurs on how does one tell apart the genuine thing from the phonies?

It would be quite frustrating to bring home a piece only to discover later on that it isn't authentic and 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 artwork, then it can be securely presumed that any Inuit art piece purchased from a local northern shop or directly from an Inuit carver would be genuine. One would have to be more careful elsewhere in Canada, specifically in traveler areas where all sorts of other Canadian souvenirs such as tee shirts, hockey jerseys, postcards, key chains, maple syrup, and other Native Canadian arts are offered.

The most safe places to purchase Inuit sculptures to make sure authenticity are constantly the reputable galleries that concentrate on Canadian Inuit art and Eskimo art. Some of these galleries have ads in the city tourist guides found in hotels.

Reputable Inuit art galleries are also noted in Inuit Art Quarterly magazine which is devoted 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 only Inuit art and perhaps Native art however none of the other typical tourist keepsakes such as postcards or tee shirts . These galleries will have just genuine Inuit art for sale as they do not deal with phonies or imitations . Just to be even much safer, make sure that the piece you have an interest in includes a Canadian government Igloo tag licensing that it was handmade by a Canadian Inuit artist. The Inuit sculpture may be signed by the carver either in English or Inuit syllabics but not all genuine pieces are signed. Be mindful that an unsigned piece might still be indeed authentic.

Some of these Inuit art galleries likewise have websites so you might shop and purchase authentic Inuit art sculpture from house anywhere in the world. In addition to these street retail specialized galleries, there are now trustworthy online galleries that also concentrate on genuine Inuit art. These online galleries are a great alternative for purchasing Inuit art because the rates are typically lower than those at street retail galleries because of lower overheads. Obviously, like other shopping on the internet, one must take care so when dealing with an online gallery, ensure that their pieces likewise come with the official Igloo tags to guarantee authenticity.

Some traveler shops do carry genuine Inuit art as well as the other touristy keepsakes in order to cater to all types of tourists. Authentic Inuit sculpture is sculpted from stone and for that reason ought to have some weight or mass to it. An genuine Inuit sculpture is a one of a kind piece of art work and nothing else on the shop racks will look exactly like it.

This can be a real gray area to those unknown with genuine Inuit art. If a seller declares that such Kurt Criter Denver as piece is authentic, ask to see the official 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 official Igloo tags will constantly be the highest priced and are typically kept in a different ( possibly even locked) shelf within the shop.


Considering that Inuit art has been getting more and more international direct exposure, individuals might be seeing this Canadian great art form at museums and galleries 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 wonderful artwork, then it can be securely presumed that any Inuit art piece acquired from a local northern shop or straight from an Inuit carver would be genuine. Trusted Inuit art galleries are likewise listed in Inuit Art Quarterly magazine 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 genuine pieces are signed. Some of these Inuit art galleries also have websites so you might shop and buy genuine Inuit art sculpture from home anywhere in the world.

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