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



Many visitors to Canada will be exposed to Inuit art (Eskimo art) sculptures while visiting the nation. These are the magnificent handmade sculptures carved 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 areas popular with worldwide visitors such as Banff, Inuit sculptures will be seen at various retail shops and showed at some museums. Because Inuit art has been getting a growing number of global direct exposure, individuals might be seeing this Canadian art kind at museums and galleries situated outside Canada too. As a result, it will be natural for many travelers and art collectors to choose that they would like to purchase Inuit sculptures as great keepsakes for their houses or as extremely special gifts for others. Presuming that the intention is to acquire an authentic piece of Inuit art instead of a inexpensive traveler replica, the concern arises on how does one tell apart the real thing from the phonies?

It would be pretty disappointing to bring home a piece just to learn later that it isn't really authentic or perhaps made in Canada. If one is fortunate enough to be traveling in the Canadian Arctic where the Inuit live and make their fantastic art work, then it can be safely assumed that any Inuit art piece bought from a local northern store or directly from an Inuit carver would be authentic. One would need to be more cautious in other places in Canada, especially in tourist locations where all sorts of other Canadian souvenirs such as t-shirts, hockey jerseys, postcards, crucial chains, maple syrup, and other Native Canadian arts are sold.

The safest places to shop for Inuit sculptures to guarantee authenticity are constantly the trustworthy galleries that focus on Canadian Inuit art and Eskimo art. A few of these galleries have ads in the city tour guide discovered in hotels.

Trusted Inuit art galleries are likewise listed in Inuit Art Quarterly magazine which is dedicated entirely to Inuit art. When one walks into these galleries, one will see that there will be only Inuit art and perhaps Native art however none of the other usual traveler mementos such as postcards or tee shirts . The Inuit sculpture might be signed by the carver either in English or Inuit syllabics however not all authentic pieces are signed.

Some of these Inuit art galleries also have sites so you might shop and buy authentic Inuit art sculpture from home anywhere in the world. In addition to these street retail specialty galleries, there are now trusted online galleries that likewise specialize in authentic Inuit art.

Some tourist shops do carry genuine 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 for that reason ought to 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 store racks will look exactly like it.

This can be a real gray area to those unknown with genuine Inuit art. If discover here a seller claims 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 carved. The authentic pieces with the accompanying official Igloo tags will constantly be the greatest priced and are typically kept in a different (perhaps even locked) shelf within the shop.


Because Inuit art has actually been getting more and more international direct exposure, people may be seeing this Canadian great art type at museums and galleries located outside Canada too. If one is fortunate enough to be taking a trip in the Canadian Arctic where the Inuit live and make their wonderful artwork, then it can be safely assumed that any Inuit art piece bought from a local northern shop or straight from an Inuit carver would be genuine. Trustworthy Inuit art galleries are likewise noted in Inuit Art Quarterly magazine which is dedicated entirely to Inuit art. The Inuit sculpture might be signed by the carver either in English or Inuit syllabics but not all authentic pieces are signed. Some of these Inuit art galleries likewise have sites so you might shop and purchase genuine Inuit art sculpture from home anywhere in the world.

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