Tips on How to Buy and Look For Genuine Canadian Inuit Art (Eskimo Art) Sculptures
Many visitors to Canada will be exposed to Inuit art (Eskimo art) sculptures while exploring the country. Given that Inuit art has been getting more and more worldwide direct exposure, individuals may be seeing this Canadian great art type at museums and galleries situated outside Canada too. Presuming that the objective is to obtain an authentic piece of Inuit art rather than a cheap traveler imitation, the question emerges on how does one inform apart the genuine thing from the phonies?
It would be pretty frustrating to bring home a piece only to learn later that it isn't authentic and even made in Canada. If one is fortunate enough to be traveling in the Canadian Arctic where the Inuit live and make their wonderful artwork, then it can be securely presumed that any Inuit art piece purchased from a local northern store or directly from an Inuit carver would be authentic. One would need to be more cautious elsewhere in Canada, specifically in traveler locations where all sorts of other Canadian souvenirs such as tee shirts, hockey jerseys, postcards, crucial chains, maple syrup, and other Native Canadian arts are offered.
The safest places to purchase Inuit sculptures to guarantee credibility are always the trusted galleries that focus on Canadian Inuit art and Eskimo art. A few of these galleries have advertisements in the city tourist guides found in hotels.
Respectable Inuit art galleries are also noted in Inuit Art Quarterly magazine which is devoted entirely to Inuit art. When one walks into these galleries, one will see that there will be just Inuit art and perhaps Native art however none of the other normal traveler mementos such as t-shirts or postcards . The Inuit sculpture may be signed by the carver either in English or Inuit syllabics but not all authentic pieces are signed.
A few of these Inuit art galleries also have websites so you could shop and purchase authentic Inuit art sculpture from home throughout the world. In addition to these street retail specialized galleries, there are now credible online galleries that also focus on authentic Inuit art. These online galleries are a great choice for buying Inuit art because the prices are typically lower than those at street retail galleries because of lower overheads. Naturally, like other shopping on the internet, one must take care so when dealing with an online gallery, make certain that their pieces also feature the official Igloo tags to make sure credibility.
Some traveler shops do carry genuine Inuit art as well as the other touristy keepsakes in order to cater to all types of tourists. When shopping at these types of shops, it is possible to differentiate the real pieces from the recreations. Authentic Inuit sculpture is carved from stone and for that reason should have some weight or mass to it. Stone is likewise cold to the touch. A recreation made from plastic or resin from a mold will be much lighter in weight and will not be cold to the touch. A recreation will often have a company name on it such as Wolf Originals or Boma and will never include an artist's signature. An genuine Inuit sculpture is a one of a kind piece of art work and nothing else on the shop shelves will look exactly like it. If there are duplicates of a certain piece with precise details, the piece is not authentic. If a piece looks too perfect in detail with outright straight bottoms or sides, it is probably not real. Obviously, if a piece features a sticker label showing that is was made in an Asian country, then it is clearly a fake. There will also be a big rate difference between authentic pieces and the replicas.
Where it ends up being harder to figure out credibility are with the reproductions that are likewise made from stone. This can be a genuine gray area to those not familiar with authentic Inuit art. They do have mass and may even have some kind of tag indicating that it was handcrafted however if there are other pieces on the shelves that look too comparable in detail, they are more than likely not authentic. If a seller declares that such as piece is authentic, ask to see the official navigate to this website Igloo tag that comes with it which will know on the artist, area where it was made and the year it was sculpted. If the Igloo tag is not readily available, proceed. The authentic pieces with the accompanying authorities Igloo tags will constantly be the highest priced and are typically kept in a different ( maybe even locked) shelf within the store.
Given that Inuit art has been getting more and more global exposure, people might be seeing this Canadian fine art type at galleries and museums situated 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 presumed that any Inuit art piece purchased from a regional northern store or directly from an Inuit carver would be authentic. Trusted Inuit art galleries are also noted in Inuit Art Quarterly publication which is dedicated entirely 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 sites so you could shop and buy authentic Inuit art sculpture from home anywhere in the world.