Tips on The Best Ways To Purchase and Purchase Authentic Canadian Inuit Art (Eskimo Art) Sculptures
Many visitors to Canada will be exposed to Inuit art (Eskimo art) sculptures while visiting the country. Because Inuit art has been getting more and more worldwide direct exposure, individuals might be seeing this Canadian fine art form at museums and galleries situated outside Canada too. Assuming that the intention is to acquire an genuine piece of Inuit art rather than a low-cost traveler imitation, the question emerges on how does one tell apart the real thing from the fakes?
It would be pretty frustrating to bring home a piece just 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 wonderful art work, then it can be securely assumed that any Inuit art piece bought from a regional northern store or straight 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 mementos such as t-shirts, hockey jerseys, postcards, crucial chains, maple syrup, and other Native Canadian arts are sold.
The most safe places to shop for Inuit sculptures to make sure authenticity are constantly the reputable galleries that concentrate on Canadian Inuit art and Eskimo art. Some of these galleries have advertisements in the city tour guide found in hotels.
Reputable Inuit art galleries are likewise listed in Inuit Art Quarterly magazine which adheres totally to Inuit art. These galleries will generally be found in the downtown tourist areas of major cities. When one walks into these galleries, one will see that there will be only Inuit art and possibly Native art however none of the other usual tourist souvenirs such as t-shirts or postcards . These galleries will have only authentic Inuit art for sale as they do not deal with imitations or fakes . Just to be even safer, ensure that the piece you are interested in includes a Canadian government Igloo tag certifying 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 genuine pieces are signed. So understand that an anonymous piece may still be indeed genuine.
Some of these Inuit art galleries also have sites so you might go shopping and buy authentic Inuit art sculpture from house anywhere in the world. In addition to these street retail specialized galleries, there are now respectable online galleries that also 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. Genuine Inuit sculpture is sculpted 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 nothing else on the shop shelves will look exactly like it.
Where it becomes harder to figure out authenticity are with the reproductions that are likewise made of stone. This can be a real gray area to those not familiar with authentic Inuit art. They do have mass and may even have some kind of tag suggesting that it was handcrafted but if there are other pieces on the shelves that look too similar in detail, they are more than likely not authentic. If a seller declares that such as piece is authentic, ask to see the main Igloo tag that comes with it which will know on the artist, location where it was Kurt Criter Denver made and the year it was sculpted. If the Igloo tag is not readily available, move on. The authentic pieces with the accompanying authorities Igloo tags will constantly be the highest priced and are normally kept in a different (perhaps even locked) shelf within the shop.
Given that Inuit art has been getting more and more international exposure, people may be seeing this Canadian great art form at museums and galleries located outside Canada too. If one is lucky enough to be traveling in the Canadian Arctic where the Inuit live and make their wonderful artwork, then it can be securely presumed that any Inuit art piece bought from a local northern store or directly from an Inuit carver would be genuine. Credible 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 genuine pieces are signed. Some of these Inuit art galleries also have websites so you could go shopping and buy genuine Inuit art sculpture from home anywhere in the world.