Tips on The Best Ways To Buy and Look For Authentic Canadian Inuit Art (Eskimo Art) Sculptures
Lots of visitors to Canada will be exposed to Inuit art (Eskimo art) sculptures while touring the country. Since Inuit art has been getting more and more worldwide exposure, people may be seeing this Canadian fine art form at museums and galleries situated outside Canada too. Presuming that the intent is to get an genuine piece of Inuit art rather than a cheap tourist replica, the question occurs on how does one tell apart the genuine thing from the phonies?
It would be quite disappointing to bring home a piece only to learn later on that it isn't 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 artwork, then it can be securely assumed that any Inuit art piece bought from a regional northern shop or directly from an Inuit carver would be genuine. One would have to be more mindful somewhere else in Canada, particularly in traveler areas where all sorts of other Canadian souvenirs such as tee 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 always the trustworthy galleries that concentrate on Canadian Inuit art and Eskimo art. Some of these galleries have advertisements in the city tour guide discovered in hotels.
Credible Inuit art galleries are likewise noted in Inuit Art Quarterly magazine which is devoted completely to Inuit art. These galleries will normally be found in the downtown traveler locations of significant cities. When one strolls into these galleries, one will see that there will be just Inuit art and possibly Native art but none of the other normal tourist souvenirs such as postcards or t-shirts . These galleries will have just authentic Inuit art for sale as they do not deal with imitations or fakes . Simply to be even more secure, make certain that the piece you have an interest in features 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 however not all genuine pieces are signed. So know that an unsigned piece might still be undoubtedly authentic.
Some of these Inuit art galleries likewise have websites so you could go shopping and purchase authentic Inuit art sculpture from home throughout the world. In addition to these street retail specialty galleries, there are now reliable online galleries that also focus on genuine Inuit art. These online galleries are a good choice for purchasing Inuit art since the rates are usually lower than those at street retail galleries because of lower overheads. Obviously, like any other shopping on the internet, one should beware so when dealing with an online gallery, make sure that their pieces likewise feature the main Igloo tags to guarantee authenticity.
Some tourist stores do bring 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 therefore ought to have some weight or mass to it. An authentic Inuit sculpture is a one of a kind piece of art work and absolutely nothing else on the store shelves will look precisely like it.
This can be a real gray area to those unfamiliar with genuine Inuit art. If a seller declares that such as piece is genuine, ask look at this now to see the main Igloo tag that comes with it which will have information on the artist, place where it was made and the year it was sculpted. The genuine pieces with the accompanying official Igloo tags will always be the highest priced and are normally kept in a different ( maybe even locked) rack within the shop.
Given that Inuit art has been getting more and more worldwide exposure, people may be seeing this Canadian fine art kind 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 safely assumed that any Inuit art piece acquired from a regional northern shop or directly from an Inuit carver would be authentic. Reliable Inuit art galleries are also Website listed in Inuit Art Quarterly publication which is dedicated completely 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 also have sites so you could shop and purchase authentic Inuit art sculpture from house anywhere in the world.