Tips on The Best Ways To Buy and Shop for Genuine Canadian Inuit Art (Eskimo Art) Sculptures



Numerous visitors to Canada will be exposed to Inuit art (Eskimo art) sculptures while exploring the country. Given that Inuit art has actually been getting more and more worldwide exposure, individuals might be seeing this Canadian great art form at galleries and museums located outside Canada too. Presuming that the intention is to get an authentic piece of Inuit art rather than a inexpensive traveler replica, the question develops on how does one tell apart the real thing from the phonies?

It would be quite frustrating to bring home a piece only to learn later on that it isn't really genuine or even made in Canada. If one is fortunate enough to be traveling 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 store or directly from an Inuit carver would be genuine. One would have to be more careful elsewhere in Canada, especially 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 sold.

The safest places to buy Inuit sculptures to guarantee authenticity are always the trusted galleries that specialize in Canadian Inuit art and Eskimo art. A few of these galleries have ads in the city tourist guides found in hotels.

Reputable Inuit art galleries are likewise noted in Inuit Art Quarterly publication which is devoted completely to Inuit art. These galleries will normally be located in the downtown traveler locations of significant cities. When one strolls into these galleries, one will see that there will be just Inuit art and possibly Native art but none of the other typical tourist mementos such as postcards or tee shirts . These galleries will have just authentic Inuit art for sale as they do not handle phonies or replicas . Simply to be even safer, make sure that the piece you have an interest in includes a Canadian federal government Igloo tag accrediting that it was handcrafted 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. So understand that an anonymous piece may still be certainly genuine.

Some of these Inuit art galleries also have sites so you might go shopping and buy authentic Inuit art sculpture from home anywhere in the world. In addition to these street retail specialty galleries, there are now respectable online galleries that likewise focus on authentic Inuit art. Because of lower overheads, these online galleries are a excellent alternative for buying Inuit art since the costs are typically lower than those at street retail galleries. Obviously, like other shopping on the internet, one should beware so http://journals.oregondigital.org/index.php/OURJ/user/viewPublicProfile/5504 when handling an online gallery, make certain that their pieces also come with the official Igloo tags to guarantee credibility.

Some traveler stores do bring authentic Inuit art as well as the other touristy mementos in order to cater to all types of tourists. Authentic Inuit sculpture is sculpted from stone and for that reason should have some weight or mass to it. An authentic Inuit sculpture is a one of a kind piece of artwork and absolutely nothing else on the shop shelves will look exactly like it.

Where it becomes harder to figure out credibility are with the reproductions that are also made of stone. This can be a real gray area to those not familiar with genuine Inuit art. They do have mass and might even have some kind of tag indicating that it was handmade however if there are other pieces on the shelves that look too similar in detail, they are probably not authentic. If a seller claims that such as piece is genuine, ask to see the official Igloo tag that comes with it which will know on the artist, location where it was made and the year it was carved. Move on if the Igloo tag is not available. The authentic pieces with the accompanying official Igloo tags will constantly be the greatest priced and are typically kept in a different (perhaps even locked) rack within the store.


Because Inuit art has been getting more and more global direct exposure, people might be seeing this Canadian fine art form at museums and galleries located 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 art work, then it can be securely presumed that any Inuit art piece purchased from a regional northern store or directly from an Inuit carver would be genuine. Reliable Inuit art galleries are also listed in Inuit Art Quarterly publication which is dedicated 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 sites so you might go shopping and purchase genuine Inuit art sculpture from home anywhere in the world.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *