Tips on How to Purchase and Shop for Authentic 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 magnificent handmade sculptures sculpted from stone by the Inuit artists residing in the northern Arctic areas of Canada. While in some of the significant Canadian cities (Toronto, Vancouver, Montreal, Ottawa, and Quebec City) or other traveler areas popular with international visitors such as Banff, Inuit sculptures will be seen at various retail stores and showed at some museums. Given that Inuit art has actually been getting a growing number of worldwide exposure, individuals might be seeing this Canadian fine art form at museums and galleries located outside Canada too. As a result, it will be natural for numerous tourists and art collectors to choose that they would like to buy Inuit sculptures as nice mementos for their houses or as very special presents for others. Assuming that the intent is to acquire an genuine piece of Inuit art instead of a cheap traveler replica, the concern occurs on how does one differentiate the genuine thing from the fakes?

It would be quite disappointing to bring home a piece only to find out later on that it isn't really genuine and 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 terrific art work, then it can be safely presumed that any Inuit art piece bought from a local northern shop or directly from an Inuit carver would be genuine. One would need to be more careful elsewhere in Canada, specifically in traveler areas where all sorts of other Canadian keepsakes such as t-shirts, hockey jerseys, postcards, crucial chains, maple syrup, and other Native Canadian arts are sold.

The most safe places to shop for Inuit sculptures to guarantee authenticity are always the trustworthy galleries that focus on Canadian Inuit art and Eskimo art. A few of these galleries have advertisements in the city tourist guides discovered in hotels.

Respectable Inuit art galleries are also noted in Inuit Art Quarterly magazine which is dedicated completely 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 postcards or tee shirts . The Inuit sculpture may be signed by the carver either in English or Inuit syllabics however not all authentic pieces are signed.

A few of these Inuit art galleries also have websites so you might shop and buy genuine Inuit art sculpture from home anywhere in the world. In addition to these street retail specialized galleries, there are now credible online galleries that also focus on genuine Inuit art. These online galleries are a great alternative for buying Inuit art considering that the rates are typically lower than those at street retail galleries because of lower overheads. Naturally, like other shopping on the internet, one must be careful so when dealing with an online gallery, make sure that their pieces also feature the main Igloo tags to make sure credibility.

Some tourist shops do carry authentic Inuit art as well as the other touristy souvenirs in order to cater to all types of travelers. Genuine Inuit sculpture is sculpted from stone and therefore must 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 this link shop shelves will look exactly like it.

Where it becomes harder to identify authenticity are with the recreations that are likewise made of stone. This can be a genuine gray area to those not familiar with authentic Inuit art. They do have mass and might even have some type of tag showing that it was handcrafted but if there are other pieces on the shelves that look too comparable in detail, they are probably not genuine. If a seller claims that such as piece is genuine, ask to see the official Igloo tag that features it which will have information on the artist, area where it was made and the year it was carved. If the Igloo tag is not offered, carry on. The genuine pieces with the accompanying official Igloo tags will always be the greatest priced and are typically kept in a different ( maybe even locked) shelf within the store.


Considering that Inuit art has actually been getting more and more global direct exposure, individuals might be seeing this Canadian great art kind at museums and galleries situated outside Canada too. If one is fortunate enough to be taking a trip in the Canadian Arctic where the Inuit live and make their fantastic artwork, 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 genuine. Trusted Inuit art galleries are also listed in Inuit Art Quarterly publication 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 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.

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