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



Many visitors to Canada will be exposed to Inuit art (Eskimo art) sculptures while exploring the nation. These are the splendid handmade sculptures sculpted from stone by the Inuit artists residing in the northern Arctic regions of Canada. While in some of the significant Canadian cities (Toronto, Vancouver, Montreal, Ottawa, and Quebec City) or other traveler areas popular with worldwide visitors such as Banff, Inuit sculptures will be seen at numerous retail stores and showed at some museums. Because Inuit art has been getting increasingly more international direct exposure, individuals may be seeing this Canadian art kind at museums and galleries situated outside Canada too. As a result, it will be natural for numerous travelers and art collectors to decide that they would like to purchase Inuit sculptures as great souvenirs for their homes or as extremely distinct presents for others. Assuming that the objective is to get an genuine piece of Inuit art instead of a low-cost tourist replica, the question develops on how does one differentiate the real thing from the fakes?

It would be pretty frustrating to bring home a piece only to learn later 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 art work, then it can be safely assumed that any Inuit art piece purchased from a local northern shop or directly from an Inuit carver would be authentic. One would need to be more cautious in other places in Canada, specifically in tourist locations where all sorts of other Canadian keepsakes such as tee shirts, hockey jerseys, postcards, essential chains, maple syrup, and other Native Canadian arts are sold.

The most safe locations to buy Inuit sculptures to guarantee authenticity are constantly the trusted galleries that concentrate on Canadian Inuit art and Eskimo art. A few of these galleries have ads in the city tourist guides found in hotels.

Trusted Inuit art galleries are also noted in Inuit Art Quarterly publication which adheres totally to Inuit art. These galleries will typically be located in the downtown traveler areas of significant cities. When one strolls 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 . These galleries will have only authentic Inuit art for sale as they do not handle imitations or phonies . Just to be even safer, ensure that the piece you are interested in features a Canadian federal government Igloo tag licensing that it was handcrafted by a Canadian Inuit artist. The Inuit sculpture may be signed by the carver either in English or Inuit syllabics but not all genuine pieces are signed. So be aware that an anonymous piece may still be certainly genuine.

A few of these Inuit art galleries also have websites so you could shop and buy genuine Inuit art sculpture from home throughout the world. In addition to these street retail specialty galleries, there are now trusted online galleries that also specialize in genuine Inuit art. Because of lower overheads, these online galleries are a excellent option for buying Inuit art since the prices are generally lower than those at street retail galleries. Obviously, like other shopping on the internet, one must beware so when dealing with an online gallery, make certain that their pieces likewise include the official Igloo tags to guarantee credibility.

Some traveler stores do carry authentic Inuit art along with the other touristy mementos in order to accommodate all kinds of tourists. When shopping at these kinds of shops, it is possible to differentiate the real pieces from the recreations. Genuine Inuit sculpture is sculpted from stone and therefore should have some weight or mass to it. Stone is likewise cold to the touch. A reproduction 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 business name on it such as Wolf Originals or Boma and will never ever include an artist's signature. An genuine 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. If there are duplicates of a particular piece with exact information, the piece is not authentic. If a piece looks too perfect in detail with absolute Kurt Criter straight bottoms or sides, it is most likely not real. Of course, if a piece features a sticker label suggesting that is was made in an Asian country, then it is certainly a fake. There will also be a big price distinction in between authentic pieces and the imitations.

This can be a genuine gray area to those unknown with authentic Inuit art. If a seller declares that such as piece is authentic, ask to see the main Igloo tag that comes with it which will have information on the artist, area where it was made and the year it was carved. The authentic pieces with the accompanying official Igloo tags will constantly be the highest priced and are normally kept in a separate ( possibly even locked) shelf within the store.


Since Inuit art has actually been getting more and more international direct exposure, people may 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 terrific artwork, then it can be safely presumed that any Inuit art piece acquired from a local northern store or straight from an Inuit carver Kurt Criter would be authentic. Reliable Inuit art galleries are also listed in Inuit Art Quarterly magazine which is dedicated totally to Inuit art. The Inuit sculpture may be signed by the carver either in English or Inuit syllabics however not all genuine pieces are signed. Some of these Inuit art galleries likewise have sites so you might shop and buy genuine Inuit art sculpture from house anywhere in the world.

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