Tips on How to Buy and Buy Authentic Canadian Inuit Art (Eskimo Art) Sculptures



Lots of visitors to Canada will be exposed to Inuit art (Eskimo art) sculptures while exploring the nation. These are the magnificent handmade sculptures carved from stone by the Inuit artists residing 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 areas popular with global visitors such as Banff, Inuit sculptures will be seen at various retail shops and displayed at some museums. Since Inuit art has actually been getting increasingly more global direct 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 numerous travelers and art collectors to decide that they would like to acquire Inuit sculptures as great keepsakes for their homes or as extremely special presents for others. Presuming that the intention is to acquire an genuine piece of Inuit art rather than a low-cost tourist replica, the concern arises on how does one tell apart the real thing from the phonies?

It would be pretty disappointing to bring home a piece only to learn later on that it isn't genuine and even made in Canada. If one is fortunate enough to be traveling in the Canadian Arctic where the Inuit live and make their fantastic artwork, then it can be safely presumed that any Inuit art piece bought from a regional northern shop or straight from an Inuit carver would be authentic. One would need to be more mindful elsewhere in Canada, specifically in tourist locations where all sorts of other Canadian souvenirs such as t-shirts, hockey jerseys, postcards, key chains, maple syrup, and other Native Canadian arts are sold.

The safest places to purchase Inuit sculptures to ensure authenticity are always the credible galleries that focus on Canadian Inuit art and Eskimo art. Some of these galleries have ads in the city tour guide found in hotels.

Reliable Inuit art galleries are also listed in Inuit Art Quarterly magazine which is devoted completely to Inuit art. These galleries will generally be located in the downtown tourist locations of major cities. 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 souvenirs such as postcards or tee shirts . These galleries will have just authentic Inuit art for sale as they do not handle replicas or fakes . Simply to be even safer, ensure that the piece you have an interest in includes a Canadian government Igloo tag accrediting that it was handcrafted by a Canadian Inuit artist. The Inuit sculpture may be signed by the carver either in English or Inuit syllabics however not all genuine pieces are signed. Be mindful that an anonymous piece might still be indeed authentic.

A few of these Inuit art galleries likewise have sites so you could shop and purchase authentic Inuit art sculpture from home throughout the world. In addition to these street retail specialty galleries, there are now reputable online galleries that likewise specialize in authentic Inuit art. These online galleries are a excellent choice for purchasing Inuit art because the prices are usually lower than those at street retail galleries because of lower overheads. Naturally, like other shopping blog here on the internet, one should beware so when dealing with an online gallery, make certain that their pieces likewise feature the official Igloo tags to make sure authenticity.

Some traveler shops do carry genuine Inuit art as well as the other touristy mementos in order to deal with all types of tourists. When shopping at these kinds of shops, it is possible to tell apart the real pieces from the recreations. Genuine Inuit sculpture is sculpted from stone and for that reason must have some weight or mass to it. Stone is likewise cold to the touch. A reproduction made of plastic or resin from a mold will be much lighter in weight and will not be cold to the touch. A reproduction will often have a business name on it such as Wolf Originals or Boma and will never feature an artist's signature. 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. The piece is not authentic if there are duplicates of a specific piece with exact details. It is most likely not genuine if a piece looks too ideal in detail with absolute straight bottoms or sides. Obviously, if a piece includes a sticker label indicating that is was made in an Asian country, then it is certainly a phony. There will likewise be a big cost distinction between authentic pieces and the imitations.

Where it becomes harder to identify authenticity are with the reproductions that are likewise made from stone. This can be a real gray area to those not familiar with genuine Inuit art. They do have mass and may even have some kind of tag indicating that it was handcrafted but if there are other pieces on the shelves that look too comparable in detail, they are probably not authentic. If a seller claims 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 sculpted. Move on if the Igloo tag is not readily available. The genuine pieces with the accompanying official Igloo tags will always be the highest priced and are normally kept in a different ( possibly even locked) shelf within the store.


Since Inuit art has actually been getting more and more global exposure, people may be seeing this Canadian great art form at museums and galleries located outside Canada too. If one is lucky enough to be traveling in the Canadian Arctic where the Inuit live and make their fantastic artwork, then it can be safely assumed that any Inuit art piece bought from a regional northern store or directly from an Inuit click to read carver would be authentic. Reputable Inuit art galleries are also noted in Inuit Art Quarterly publication which is dedicated totally to Inuit art. about his The Inuit sculpture might 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 house anywhere in the world.

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