Tips on How to Buy and Purchase Genuine Canadian Inuit Art (Eskimo Art) Sculptures
Lots of visitors to Canada will be exposed to Inuit art (Eskimo art) sculptures while exploring the country. These are the splendid handmade sculptures sculpted from stone by the Inuit artists living in the northern Arctic areas of Canada. While in some of the significant Canadian cities (Toronto, Vancouver, Montreal, Ottawa, and Quebec City) or other tourist locations popular with international visitors such as Banff, Inuit sculptures will be seen at numerous retail shops and showed at some museums. Because Inuit art has actually been getting increasingly more global exposure, individuals may be seeing this Canadian art type at museums and galleries located outside Canada too. As a result, it will be natural for lots of tourists and art collectors to decide that they want to acquire Inuit sculptures as great keepsakes for their homes or as extremely distinct presents for others. Assuming that the intention is to acquire an genuine piece of Inuit art instead of a cheap tourist imitation, the question develops on how does one differentiate the real thing from the fakes?
It would be pretty disappointing to bring home a piece only to find out later that it isn't really genuine and even made in Canada. If one is lucky enough to be traveling in the Canadian Arctic where the Inuit live and make their terrific artwork, then it can be safely assumed that any Inuit art piece bought from a local northern store or straight from an Inuit carver would be genuine. One would have to be more mindful in other places in Canada, especially in tourist locations where all sorts of other Canadian mementos such as tee shirts, hockey jerseys, postcards, key chains, maple syrup, and other Native Canadian arts are offered.
The best locations to buy Inuit sculptures to make sure authenticity are constantly the reliable galleries that focus on Canadian Inuit art and Eskimo art. A few of these galleries have advertisements in the city tour guide discovered in hotels.
Credible Inuit art galleries are also noted in Inuit Art Quarterly magazine which is devoted totally to Inuit art. These galleries will normally be found in the downtown tourist areas of major cities. When one strolls into these galleries, one will see that there will be just Inuit art and perhaps Native art however none of the other typical tourist souvenirs such as postcards or t-shirts . These galleries will have only genuine Inuit art for sale as they do not deal with fakes or imitations . Simply to be even safer, ensure that the piece you have an interest in comes with a Canadian government Igloo tag licensing 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 authentic pieces are signed. So understand that an anonymous piece might still be indeed authentic.
A few of these Inuit art galleries also have websites so you could shop and buy genuine Inuit art sculpture from house throughout the world. In addition to these street retail specialized galleries, there are now trusted online galleries that likewise concentrate on authentic Inuit art. These online galleries are a excellent option for buying Inuit art given that the costs are generally lower than those at street retail galleries because of lower overheads. Obviously, like other shopping on the internet, one must beware so when dealing with an online gallery, ensure that their pieces likewise include the main Igloo tags to ensure credibility.
Some tourist stores do carry authentic Inuit art as well as the other touristy keepsakes in order to cater to all types of travelers. Authentic Inuit sculpture is carved from stone and therefore must have some weight or mass to it. An authentic Inuit sculpture is a one of a kind piece of artwork and absolutely nothing else on the store shelves will look exactly like it.
Where it becomes harder to determine authenticity are with the recreations that are likewise made from stone. This can be a real gray area to those unfamiliar with genuine Inuit art. They do have mass and might even have some type of tag showing that it was handmade but if there are other pieces on the shelves that look too similar in detail, they are most likely not authentic. If a seller declares that such as piece is genuine, ask to see the official Igloo tag that comes with it which will have information on the artist, location where it was made and the year it was sculpted. If the Igloo tag is not offered, move on. The genuine pieces with the accompanying authorities Igloo tags will constantly be the highest priced and are typically kept in a separate (perhaps even locked) shelf within the store.
Given that Inuit art has actually been getting more and more international exposure, people might be seeing this Canadian fine art type at museums and galleries 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 presumed that any Inuit art piece acquired from a local northern shop or directly from an Inuit carver would be genuine. Reliable Inuit art galleries are also noted in Inuit Art Quarterly publication which is devoted completely to Inuit art. The Inuit sculpture might be signed by the carver either in English or Inuit syllabics however not all authentic Kurt Criter pieces are signed. Some of these Inuit art galleries likewise have sites so you could shop and purchase genuine Inuit art sculpture from home anywhere in the world.