Tips on Ways To Purchase and Look For Genuine Canadian Inuit Art (Eskimo Art) Sculptures



Numerous visitors to Canada will be exposed to Inuit art (Eskimo art) sculptures while exploring the nation. These are the splendid handmade sculptures sculpted from stone by the Inuit artists living in the northern Arctic regions of Canada. While in a few of the major Canadian cities (Toronto, Vancouver, Montreal, Ottawa, and Quebec City) or other traveler locations popular with worldwide visitors such as Banff, Inuit sculptures will be seen at various retail stores and showed at some museums. Because Inuit art has been getting a growing number of worldwide 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 would like to purchase Inuit sculptures as good souvenirs for their houses or as extremely unique presents for others. Assuming that the intent is to obtain an authentic piece of Inuit art instead of a cheap tourist replica, the question emerges on how does one tell apart the real thing from the phonies?

It would be quite frustrating to bring home a piece only to discover later that it isn't genuine or perhaps made in Canada. If one is fortunate enough to be traveling in the Canadian Arctic where the Inuit live and make their fantastic art work, then it can be securely presumed that any Inuit art piece bought from a local northern store or directly from an Inuit carver would be authentic. One would have to be more cautious in other places in Canada, particularly in tourist areas where all sorts of other Canadian keepsakes such as tee shirts, hockey jerseys, postcards, essential chains, maple syrup, and other Native Canadian arts are sold.

The best places to look for Inuit sculptures to guarantee credibility are constantly the respectable galleries that focus on Canadian Inuit art and Eskimo art. A few of these galleries have ads in the city tourist guides found in hotels.

Credible Inuit art galleries are also listed in Inuit Art Quarterly publication which is devoted completely to Inuit art. These galleries will generally be found in the downtown tourist areas of major cities. When one walks into these galleries, one will see that there will be only Inuit art and maybe Native art but none of the other typical tourist keepsakes such as tee shirts or postcards . These galleries will have just Kurt Criter authentic Inuit art for sale as they do not handle 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 accrediting 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 genuine pieces are signed. So be aware that an anonymous piece might still be certainly authentic.

Some of these Inuit art galleries also have websites so you could shop and buy genuine Inuit art sculpture from house anywhere in the world. In addition to these street retail specialized galleries, there are now trustworthy online galleries that also specialize in authentic Inuit art.

Some tourist stores do bring authentic Inuit art along with the other touristy mementos in order to cater to all types of travelers. When shopping at these kinds of stores, it is possible to differentiate the genuine pieces from the reproductions. Genuine Inuit sculpture is carved from stone and for that reason must have some weight or mass to it. Stone is also cold to the touch. A recreation made of plastic or resin from a mold will be much lighter in weight and will not visit their website be cold to the touch. A recreation will often have a company name on it such as Wolf Originals or Boma and will never ever feature an artist's signature. An authentic Inuit sculpture is a one of a kind piece of art work and nothing else on the shop shelves will look precisely like it. If there are duplicates of a specific piece with precise details, the piece is not genuine. It is probably not real if a piece looks too perfect in detail with absolute straight bottoms or sides. Naturally, if a piece features a sticker label indicating that is was made in an Asian country, then it is undoubtedly a fake. There will also be a big price distinction between authentic pieces and the imitations.

This can be a real gray location to those unfamiliar with authentic Inuit art. If a seller declares that such as piece is authentic, ask to see the main Igloo tag that comes with it which will have details on the artist, area where it was made and the year it was carved. The authentic pieces with the accompanying authorities Igloo tags will always be the highest priced and are normally kept in a different ( maybe even locked) shelf within the shop.


Given that Inuit art has actually been getting more and more international direct exposure, individuals may be seeing this Canadian fine art form at galleries and museums situated outside Canada too. If one is lucky enough to be taking a trip 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 local northern store or straight from an Inuit carver would be authentic. Trusted Inuit art galleries are likewise noted in Inuit Art Quarterly magazine which is devoted totally to Inuit art. 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 you might go shopping and purchase genuine Inuit art sculpture from house anywhere in the world.

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