Tips on How to Purchase and Buy Authentic Canadian Inuit Art (Eskimo Art) Sculptures
Numerous visitors to Canada will be exposed to Inuit art (Eskimo art) sculptures while touring the country. These are the stunning handmade sculptures carved from stone by the Inuit artists residing in the northern Arctic areas of Canada. While in a few of the major Canadian cities (Toronto, Vancouver, Montreal, Ottawa, and Quebec City) or other traveler locations popular with worldwide visitors such as Banff, Inuit sculptures will be seen at various retail shops and showed at some museums. Because Inuit art has been getting a growing number of worldwide direct exposure, individuals might be seeing this Canadian fine art form at museums and galleries situated outside Canada too. As a result, it will be natural for many tourists and art collectors to choose that they would like to buy Inuit sculptures as good keepsakes for their houses or as really unique presents for others. Assuming that the intention is to acquire an authentic piece of Inuit art rather than a low-cost traveler imitation, the concern develops on how does one differentiate the genuine thing from the phonies?
It would be pretty frustrating to bring home a piece only to discover later that it isn't authentic or even made in Canada. 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 safely assumed that any Inuit art piece bought from a regional northern store or directly from an Inuit carver would be genuine. One would have to be more mindful in other places in Canada, specifically in traveler 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 sold.
The safest places to purchase Inuit sculptures to guarantee credibility are constantly the reliable galleries that focus on Canadian Inuit art and Eskimo art. Some of these galleries have ads in the city tour guide found in hotels.
Trusted Inuit art galleries are likewise noted in Inuit Art Quarterly publication which adheres entirely to Inuit art. These galleries will usually be located in the downtown tourist areas of major cities. When one strolls into these galleries, one will see that there will be only Inuit art and maybe Native art however none of the other usual traveler mementos such as t-shirts or postcards . These galleries will have just authentic Inuit art for sale as they do not handle replicas or phonies . Just to be even more secure, make certain that the piece you are interested in features 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 however not all authentic pieces are signed. So know that an anonymous piece might still be indeed authentic.
Some of these Inuit art galleries likewise have sites so you could go shopping and buy genuine Inuit art sculpture from house throughout the world. In addition to these street retail specialized galleries, there are now credible online galleries that likewise concentrate on authentic Inuit art. These online galleries are a excellent alternative for purchasing Inuit art given that the prices are usually lower than those at street retail galleries because of lower overheads. Naturally, like any other shopping on the internet, one need to take care so when handling an online gallery, make certain that their pieces also come with the official Igloo tags to make sure authenticity.
Some tourist stores do bring authentic Inuit art as well as the other touristy keepsakes in order to cater to all types of tourists. Genuine Inuit sculpture is carved from stone and therefore needs to 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 store shelves will look exactly like it.
Where it becomes harder to determine authenticity are with the reproductions that are likewise made of stone. This can be a real gray area to those unfamiliar with genuine Inuit art. They do have mass and might even have some kind of tag suggesting that it was handmade but 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 features it which will know on the artist, place where it was made Recommended Reading and the year it was carved. Move on if the Igloo tag is not readily available. The genuine pieces with the accompanying official Igloo tags will always be the highest priced and are generally kept in a different ( possibly even locked) rack within the shop.
Since Inuit art has actually been getting more and more global exposure, people might be seeing this Canadian great art kind at museums and galleries located outside Canada too. If one is lucky enough to be traveling in the Canadian Arctic where the Inuit live and make their fantastic artwork, then it can be safely presumed that any Inuit art piece bought from a regional northern store or straight from an Inuit carver would be authentic. Trustworthy Inuit art galleries are also noted 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 but not all genuine pieces are signed. Some of these Inuit art galleries likewise have websites so you could shop and purchase authentic Inuit art sculpture from home anywhere in the world.