Tips on Ways To Purchase and Look For Genuine Canadian Inuit Art (Eskimo Art) Sculptures

Many visitors to Canada will be exposed to Inuit art (Eskimo art) sculptures while touring the nation. Given that Inuit art has actually been getting more and more international direct exposure, individuals may be seeing this Canadian fine art type at galleries and museums situated outside Canada too. Presuming that the objective is to acquire an authentic piece of Inuit art rather than a cheap tourist imitation, the question develops on how does one inform apart the genuine thing from the phonies?

It would be quite disappointing to bring home a piece only to learn later that it isn't genuine or perhaps made in Canada. 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 presumed that any Inuit art piece bought from a regional northern shop or straight from an Inuit carver would be authentic. One would have to be more mindful elsewhere in Canada, specifically in traveler locations where all sorts of other Canadian mementos such as t-shirts, hockey jerseys, postcards, key chains, maple syrup, and other Native Canadian arts are offered.

The most safe places to look for Inuit sculptures to ensure authenticity are always the trusted galleries that specialize in Canadian Inuit art and Eskimo art. Some of these galleries have ads in the city tour guide discovered in hotels.

Respectable Inuit art galleries are also noted in Inuit Art Quarterly publication which is devoted entirely to Inuit art. These galleries will generally be located in the downtown traveler locations of significant cities. When one walks into these galleries, one will see that there will be only Inuit art and perhaps Native art but none of the other usual tourist keepsakes such as postcards or tee shirts . These galleries will have just genuine Inuit art for sale as they do not handle imitations or fakes . Just to be even more secure, make sure that the piece you are interested in features a Canadian government Igloo tag licensing that it was handcrafted by a Canadian Inuit artist. The Inuit sculpture might be signed by the carver either in English or Inuit syllabics however not all authentic pieces are signed. Be conscious that an anonymous piece might still be certainly genuine.

Some of these Inuit art galleries likewise have websites so you might shop and buy genuine Inuit art sculpture from house anywhere in the world. In addition to these street retail specialized galleries, there are now trustworthy online galleries that also specialize in authentic Inuit art.

Some traveler stores do carry authentic Inuit art as well as the other touristy mementos in order to cater to all types of travelers. Genuine Inuit sculpture is sculpted 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 absolutely nothing else on the shop racks will look precisely like it.

This can be a real gray area to those unfamiliar with authentic Inuit art. If a seller claims that such as piece is authentic, ask to see the main Igloo tag that comes with it which will have info on the artist, location where it was made and the year it was sculpted. The authentic pieces with the accompanying authorities Igloo tags will constantly be the highest priced and are usually kept in a separate ( possibly even locked) shelf within the store.


Since Inuit art has been getting more and more international direct exposure, individuals may be seeing this Canadian fine art type at galleries and museums located outside Canada too. If one is lucky enough to be traveling in the Canadian Arctic where the Inuit live and make their fantastic artwork, then it useful link can be safely assumed that any Inuit art piece acquired from a local northern shop or directly from an Inuit carver would be authentic. Respectable Inuit art galleries are likewise 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 but not all authentic pieces are signed. Some of these Inuit art galleries also have websites so you might go shopping and buy authentic Inuit art sculpture from house anywhere in the world.