Tips on How to Buy and Look For Authentic Canadian Inuit Art (Eskimo Art) Sculptures
Many visitors to Canada will be exposed to Inuit art (Eskimo art) sculptures while visiting the country. Given that Inuit art has actually been getting more and more international exposure, individuals may be seeing this Canadian fine art form at galleries and museums situated outside Canada too. Presuming that the intention is to get an authentic piece of Inuit art rather than a inexpensive traveler imitation, the concern develops on how does one inform apart the genuine thing from the phonies?
It would be pretty disappointing to bring home a piece just to learn later on that it isn't really authentic or perhaps made in Canada. If one is lucky enough to be taking a trip in the Canadian Arctic where the Inuit live and make their wonderful artwork, then it can be securely assumed that any Inuit art piece bought from a local northern store or directly from an Inuit carver would be genuine. One would need to be more careful somewhere else in Canada, particularly in traveler areas where all sorts of other Canadian mementos such as tee shirts, hockey jerseys, postcards, essential chains, maple syrup, and other Native Canadian arts are sold.
The best locations to buy Inuit sculptures to guarantee authenticity are constantly the respectable galleries that concentrate on Canadian Inuit art and Eskimo art. A few of these galleries have ads in the city tour guide found in hotels.
Trustworthy Inuit art galleries are also listed in Inuit Art Quarterly publication which is devoted totally to Inuit art. When one walks into these galleries, one will see that there will be only Inuit art and possibly Native art but none of the other typical traveler keepsakes such as postcards or t-shirts . The Inuit sculpture might be signed by the carver either in English or Inuit syllabics but not all genuine pieces are signed.
A few of these Inuit art galleries likewise have websites so you could go shopping and purchase genuine Inuit art sculpture from home throughout the world. In addition to these street retail specialized galleries, there are now respectable online galleries that also concentrate on genuine Inuit art. These online galleries are a good alternative for buying Inuit art because the rates are typically lower than those at street retail galleries because of lower overheads. Of course, like other shopping on the internet, one need to be careful so when dealing with an online gallery, make certain that their pieces also include the main Igloo tags to make sure credibility.
Some traveler shops do bring authentic Inuit art as well as the other touristy souvenirs in order to cater to all types of travelers. Authentic 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 artwork and nothing else on the store shelves will look exactly like it.
Where it becomes harder to determine credibility are with the recreations that are also made from stone. This can be a real gray area to those unfamiliar with genuine 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 genuine. If a seller declares that such as piece is authentic, ask to see the main Igloo tag that features it which will know on the artist, location where it was made and the year it was carved. If the Igloo tag is not readily available, carry on. The authentic pieces with the accompanying official Igloo tags will always be the greatest priced and are typically kept in a separate ( possibly even locked) rack within the store.
Considering that Inuit art has been getting more and more international direct exposure, people might be seeing this Canadian great 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 fantastic artwork, then it can be securely assumed that any Inuit art piece purchased from a local northern shop or directly from an Inuit carver would be authentic. Credible Inuit art galleries are also listed in Inuit Art Quarterly magazine which is dedicated completely to Inuit art. The Inuit sculpture may be signed by the carver either in English or Inuit syllabics however not all authentic pieces Kurt Criter Denver are signed. Some of these Inuit art galleries also have sites so you might go shopping and buy genuine Inuit art sculpture from home anywhere in the world.