Tips on Ways To Purchase and Look For Authentic Canadian Inuit Art (Eskimo Art) Sculptures
Numerous visitors to Canada will be exposed to Inuit art (Eskimo art) sculptures while touring the country. Since Inuit art has been getting more and more global direct exposure, people might be seeing this Canadian fine art kind at galleries and museums situated outside Canada too. Assuming that the intention is to get an authentic piece of Inuit art rather than a low-cost tourist imitation, the concern arises on how does one inform apart the genuine thing from the phonies?
It would be quite disappointing to bring home a piece only to learn later that it isn't really authentic and even made in Canada. If one is fortunate enough to be traveling in the Canadian Arctic where the Inuit live and make their terrific art work, then it can be safely presumed that any Inuit art piece bought from a local northern store or directly from an Inuit carver would be authentic. One would need to be more careful in other places in Canada, specifically in tourist locations where all sorts of other Canadian mementos such as tee shirts, hockey jerseys, postcards, crucial chains, maple syrup, and other Native Canadian arts are sold.
The best locations to shop for Inuit sculptures to make sure credibility are always the trusted galleries that concentrate on Canadian Inuit art and Eskimo art. Some of these galleries have advertisements in the city tour guide discovered in hotels.
Trustworthy Inuit art galleries are also noted in Inuit Art Quarterly publication which adheres completely to Inuit art. These galleries will typically be found in the downtown tourist areas of major cities. When one walks into these galleries, one will see that there will be just Inuit art and possibly Native art but none of the other typical tourist souvenirs such as t-shirts or postcards . These galleries will have only genuine Inuit art for sale as they do not deal with fakes or replicas . Simply to be even much safer, make sure that the piece you are interested in comes with a Canadian federal government Igloo tag certifying 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 authentic pieces are signed. So understand that an unsigned piece might still be undoubtedly genuine.
Some of these Inuit art galleries likewise have websites so you could shop and buy genuine Inuit art sculpture from home anywhere Kurt Criter in the world. In addition to these street retail specialty galleries, there are now reliable online galleries that likewise concentrate on genuine Inuit art. Because of lower overheads, these online galleries are a great choice for purchasing Inuit art because the prices are normally lower than those at street retail galleries. Of course, like other shopping on the internet, one need to beware so when dealing with an online gallery, ensure that their pieces also include the official Igloo tags to make sure credibility.
Some traveler stores 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 therefore ought to 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 store racks will look precisely like it.
Where it ends up being more difficult to figure out credibility are with the reproductions that are also made from stone. This can view website be a real gray area to those unfamiliar with genuine Inuit art. They do have mass and may even have some type of tag showing that it was handmade but if there are other pieces on the shelves that look too similar in detail, they are most likely not genuine. If a seller declares that such as piece is authentic, ask to see the official Igloo tag that includes it which will have information on the artist, location where it was made and the year it was carved. Move on if the Igloo tag is not offered. The genuine pieces with the accompanying official Igloo tags will always be the greatest priced and are usually kept in a different (perhaps even locked) shelf within the shop.
Since Inuit art has actually 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 traveling in the Canadian Arctic where the Inuit live and make their wonderful art work, then it can be safely presumed that any Inuit art piece acquired from a regional northern store or directly from an Inuit carver would be authentic. Reliable Inuit art galleries are also noted in Inuit Art Quarterly magazine which is devoted entirely 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 authentic Inuit art sculpture from house anywhere in the world.