Tips on The Best Ways To Buy and Look For Authentic Canadian Inuit Art (Eskimo Art) Sculptures
Many visitors to Canada will be exposed to Inuit art (Eskimo art) sculptures while visiting the nation. These are the spectacular handmade sculptures sculpted from stone by the Inuit artists living in the northern Arctic regions of Canada. While in some of the major Canadian cities (Toronto, Vancouver, Montreal, Ottawa, and Quebec City) or other traveler locations popular with global visitors such as Banff, Inuit sculptures will be seen at various retail stores and displayed at some museums. Considering that Inuit art has been getting more and more international exposure, people might be seeing this Canadian art form at museums and galleries located outside Canada too. As a result, it will be natural for numerous tourists and art collectors to decide that they wish to buy Inuit sculptures as good mementos for their homes or as very distinct gifts for others. Assuming that the intention is to acquire an genuine piece of Inuit art rather than a low-cost traveler replica, the question occurs on how does one differentiate the genuine thing from the phonies?
It would be pretty disappointing to bring home a piece only to find out later on 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 securely presumed that any Inuit art piece bought from a regional northern shop or straight from an Inuit carver would be genuine. One would need to be more mindful somewhere else in Canada, particularly in traveler areas where all sorts of other Canadian keepsakes 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 always the reputable galleries that concentrate on Canadian Inuit art and Eskimo art. A few of these galleries have advertisements in the city tour guide discovered in hotels.
Credible Inuit art galleries are also listed in Inuit Art Quarterly publication which is devoted completely to Inuit art. These galleries will typically be found in the downtown traveler locations of significant cities. When one walks into these galleries, one will see that there will be just Inuit art and maybe Native art but none of the other normal tourist mementos such as postcards or t-shirts . These galleries will have only authentic Inuit art for sale as they do not handle fakes or replicas . Just to be even more secure, make sure that the piece you are interested in includes a Canadian federal government Igloo tag licensing that it was handmade by a Canadian Inuit artist. The Inuit sculpture might be signed by the carver either in English or Inuit syllabics but not all authentic pieces are signed. Be aware that an anonymous piece may still be undoubtedly authentic.
Some of these Inuit art galleries also have websites so you could shop and buy authentic Inuit art sculpture from home anywhere in the world. In addition to these street retail specialized galleries, there are now credible online galleries that also specialize in genuine Inuit art.
Some tourist shops do bring genuine Inuit art as well as the other touristy souvenirs article in order to cater to all types of tourists. Genuine Inuit sculpture is carved from stone and for that reason 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 shop racks will look precisely like it.
This 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 info on the artist, area where it was made and the year it was carved. The authentic pieces with the accompanying official Igloo tags will constantly be the highest priced and are typically kept in a separate ( possibly even locked) rack within the shop.
Given that Inuit art has actually been getting more and more global exposure, people might be seeing this Canadian great art form at galleries and museums situated outside Canada too. If from this source one is lucky enough to be taking a trip in the Canadian Arctic where the Inuit live and make their fantastic art work, then it can be safely assumed that any Inuit art piece purchased from a local northern store or directly from an Inuit carver would be genuine. Trustworthy Inuit art galleries are likewise listed in Inuit Art Quarterly magazine which is devoted entirely to Inuit art. The Inuit sculpture might be signed by the carver either in English or Inuit syllabics Kurt Criter however not all genuine pieces are signed. Some of these Inuit art galleries likewise have sites so you could shop and purchase genuine Inuit art sculpture from house anywhere in the world.