Tips on Ways To Purchase and Look For Genuine Canadian Inuit Art (Eskimo Art) Sculptures
Lots of visitors to Canada will be exposed to Inuit art (Eskimo art) sculptures while touring the country. Because Inuit art has been getting more and more worldwide direct exposure, individuals may be seeing this Canadian fine art type at museums and galleries located outside Canada too. Assuming that the intention is to acquire an authentic piece of Inuit art rather than a cheap traveler replica, the question arises on how does one inform apart the genuine thing from the fakes?
It would be pretty frustrating to bring home a piece only to find out later on that it isn't really authentic 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 art work, then it can be safely presumed that any Inuit art piece purchased from a regional northern store or straight from an Inuit carver would be genuine. One would need to be more cautious elsewhere in Canada, especially in traveler locations where all sorts of other Canadian mementos such as t-shirts, hockey jerseys, postcards, essential chains, maple syrup, and other Native Canadian arts are offered.
The best locations to purchase Inuit sculptures to ensure credibility are always the trustworthy galleries that concentrate on Canadian Inuit art and Eskimo art. A few of these galleries have advertisements in the city tourist guides discovered in hotels.
Trustworthy Inuit art galleries are also listed in Inuit Art Quarterly publication which is devoted totally to Inuit art. When one walks into these galleries, one will see that there will be just Inuit art and perhaps Native art but none of the other normal tourist keepsakes such as this content postcards or t-shirts . The Inuit sculpture may be signed by the carver either in English or Inuit syllabics but not all authentic pieces are signed.
Some of these Inuit art galleries also have websites so page you might go shopping and buy authentic Inuit art sculpture from house anywhere in the world. In addition to these street retail specialized galleries, there are now reliable online galleries that also specialize in genuine Inuit art.
Some tourist shops do carry authentic Inuit art as well as the other touristy souvenirs in order to cater to all types of tourists. Genuine Inuit sculpture is sculpted from stone and for that reason needs to have some weight or mass to it. An genuine Inuit sculpture is a one of a kind piece of art work and nothing else on the store shelves will look precisely like it.
This can be a genuine gray area to those unfamiliar with authentic Inuit art. If a seller claims that such as piece is genuine, ask to see the main Igloo tag that comes with it which will have details on the artist, location where it was made and the year it was carved. The authentic pieces with the accompanying official Igloo tags will always be the highest priced and are typically kept in a separate ( possibly even locked) shelf within the store.
Given that Inuit art has been getting more and more worldwide exposure, people may be seeing this Canadian great art kind at galleries and museums located outside Canada too. If one is fortunate enough to be taking a trip in the Canadian Arctic where the Inuit live and make their terrific artwork, then it can be safely presumed that any Inuit art piece acquired from a regional northern store or straight from an Inuit carver would be genuine. Respectable Inuit art galleries are also noted 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 likewise have websites so you might shop and buy genuine Inuit art sculpture from home anywhere in the world.