Tips on Ways To Purchase and Shop for Genuine Canadian Inuit Art (Eskimo Art) Sculptures



Many visitors to Canada will be exposed to Inuit art (Eskimo art) sculptures while exploring the country. These are the stunning handmade sculptures carved from stone by the Inuit artists living 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 tourist locations popular with worldwide visitors such as Banff, Inuit sculptures will be seen at different retail shops and showed at some museums. Considering that Inuit art has been getting more and more global exposure, individuals may be seeing this Canadian art type at galleries and museums situated outside Canada too. As a result, it will be natural for many travelers and art collectors to choose that they wish to acquire Inuit sculptures as good keepsakes for their homes or as extremely unique gifts for others. Presuming that the intent is to obtain an genuine piece of Inuit art instead of a cheap tourist replica, the concern arises on how does one tell apart the real thing from the phonies?

It would be pretty frustrating to bring home a piece just to discover later that it isn't 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 artwork, then it can be securely assumed that any Inuit art piece bought from a local northern store or straight from an Inuit carver would be genuine. One would have to be more careful in other places in Canada, specifically in tourist locations where all sorts of other Canadian mementos such as t-shirts, hockey jerseys, postcards, key chains, maple syrup, and other Native Canadian arts are sold.

The most safe places to shop for Inuit sculptures to make sure authenticity are constantly the credible galleries that specialize in Canadian Inuit art and Eskimo art. A few of these galleries have advertisements in the city tourist guides discovered in hotels.

Reliable Inuit art galleries are also noted in Inuit Art Quarterly publication which is devoted completely to Inuit art. When one walks into these galleries, one will see that there will be only Inuit art and possibly Native art however none of the other normal traveler souvenirs such as postcards or t-shirts . The Inuit sculpture may be signed by the carver either in English or Inuit syllabics however not all genuine pieces are signed.

A few of these Inuit art galleries also have sites so you might shop and buy authentic Inuit art sculpture from home throughout the world. In addition to these street retail specialized galleries, there are now respectable online galleries that also focus on authentic Inuit art. These online galleries are a good choice for buying Inuit art since the costs are generally lower than those at street retail galleries because of lower overheads. Naturally, like any other shopping on the internet, one need to be careful so when dealing with an online gallery, ensure that their pieces likewise feature the main Igloo tags to ensure authenticity.

Some tourist stores do bring genuine Inuit art as well as the other touristy mementos in order to cater to all types of travelers. Genuine Inuit sculpture is sculpted from stone and therefore ought 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 shop racks will look exactly like it.

Where it becomes more difficult to identify authenticity are https://soundcloud.com/kurt-criter with the reproductions that are likewise made from stone. This can be a genuine gray area to those not familiar with authentic Inuit art. They do have mass and may even have some kind of tag showing that it was handmade however if there are other pieces on the shelves that look too similar in detail, they are more than likely not authentic. If a seller declares that such as piece is genuine, ask to see the official Igloo tag that features it which will know on the artist, place where it was made and the year it was sculpted. Move on if the Igloo tag is not available. The genuine pieces with the accompanying authorities Igloo tags will constantly be the highest priced and are generally kept in a separate (perhaps even locked) shelf within the shop.


Considering that Inuit art has actually been getting more and more global direct exposure, individuals may be seeing this Canadian fine art form at galleries and museums 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 assumed that any Inuit art piece purchased from a local northern shop or straight from an Inuit carver would be authentic. Trustworthy Inuit art galleries are likewise listed in Inuit Art Quarterly magazine which is dedicated completely to Inuit art. The Inuit sculpture may be signed by the carver either in English or Inuit syllabics however not all authentic pieces are signed. Some of these Inuit art galleries also have sites so you could go shopping and buy genuine Inuit art sculpture from home anywhere in the world.

Leave a Reply

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