Tips on How 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 nation. Considering 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. Presuming that the intention is to obtain an genuine piece of Inuit art rather than a cheap tourist replica, the question arises on how does one tell apart the genuine thing from the phonies?
It would be quite frustrating to bring home a piece just to discover later on that it isn't authentic 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 wonderful art work, then it can be safely assumed that any Inuit art piece purchased from a regional northern store or straight from an Inuit carver would be authentic. One would need to be more careful in other places in Canada, especially in traveler areas where all sorts of other Canadian souvenirs such as tee shirts, hockey jerseys, postcards, essential chains, maple syrup, and other Native Canadian arts are offered.
The most safe locations to look for Inuit sculptures to ensure credibility are always the respectable galleries that focus on Canadian Inuit art and Eskimo art. Some of these galleries have advertisements in the city tour guide discovered in hotels.
Reputable Inuit art galleries are likewise listed in Inuit Art Quarterly publication which is devoted totally to Inuit art. These galleries will normally be located in the downtown tourist locations of significant cities. When one walks into these galleries, one will see that there will be just Inuit art and possibly Native art however none of the other usual tourist mementos such as t-shirts or postcards . These galleries will have only authentic Inuit art for sale as they do not handle phonies or imitations . Just to be even much safer, ensure that the piece you have an interest 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 authentic pieces are signed. So be aware that an anonymous piece may still be indeed genuine.
Some of these Inuit art galleries likewise have websites so you could go shopping and purchase authentic Inuit art sculpture from house throughout the world. In addition to these street retail specialized galleries, there are now reliable online galleries that also concentrate on authentic Inuit art. These online galleries are a great option for purchasing Inuit art considering that the rates are usually lower than those at street retail galleries because of lower overheads. Of course, like any other shopping on the internet, one should be careful so when dealing with an online gallery, make sure that find out here now their pieces also come with the main Igloo tags to make sure credibility.
Some tourist shops do carry genuine Inuit art as well as the other touristy souvenirs in order to cater to all types of tourists. Authentic Inuit sculpture is carved from stone and therefore should have some weight or mass to it. An authentic Inuit sculpture is a one of a kind piece of art work and nothing else on the shop racks will look exactly like it.
Where it ends up being more difficult to identify authenticity are with the recreations that are also made from stone. This can be a genuine gray area to those unfamiliar with genuine Inuit art. They do have mass and may even have some kind of tag suggesting that it was handmade however if there are other pieces on the shelves that look too similar in detail, they are more than likely not authentic. If a seller claims that official statement such as piece is authentic, ask to see the main Igloo tag that includes it which will have information on the artist, location where it was made and the year it was carved. Move on if the Igloo tag is not available. 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) rack within the shop.
Because Inuit art has actually been getting more and more worldwide direct exposure, people may be seeing this Canadian great art kind at galleries and museums located outside Canada too. If one is fortunate enough to be traveling 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 straight from an Inuit carver would be genuine. Reliable Inuit art galleries are likewise listed my response in Inuit Art Quarterly magazine 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 genuine pieces are signed. Some of these Inuit art galleries likewise have sites so you might go shopping and buy authentic Inuit art sculpture from house anywhere in the world.