Tips on How to Purchase and Buy Genuine Canadian Inuit Art (Eskimo Art) Sculptures
Lots of visitors to Canada will be exposed to Inuit art (Eskimo art) sculptures while exploring the nation. These are the stunning handmade sculptures carved from stone by the Inuit artists residing 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 global visitors such as Banff, Inuit sculptures will be seen at various retail stores and showed at some museums. Because Inuit art has actually been getting more and more worldwide direct exposure, people may be seeing this Canadian art kind at galleries and museums located outside Canada too. As a result, it will be natural for lots of tourists and art collectors to decide that they wish to acquire Inuit sculptures as great souvenirs for their homes or as really special gifts for others. Assuming that the objective is to obtain an genuine piece of Inuit art instead of a cheap tourist imitation, the question develops on how does one differentiate the genuine thing from the phonies?
It would be pretty disappointing to bring home a piece only to learn later on that it isn't authentic or perhaps made in Canada. If one is fortunate 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 regional northern shop or directly from an Inuit carver would be authentic. One would have to be more mindful in other places in Canada, specifically in traveler areas where all sorts of other Canadian souvenirs such as tee shirts, hockey jerseys, postcards, crucial chains, maple syrup, and other Native Canadian arts are sold.
The safest locations to buy Inuit sculptures to guarantee authenticity are always the reliable galleries that specialize in Canadian Inuit art and Eskimo art. A few of these galleries have advertisements in the city tourist guides discovered in hotels.
Credible Inuit art galleries are also listed in Inuit Art Quarterly publication which is devoted totally to Inuit art. These galleries will normally be located in the downtown traveler areas of significant cities. When one walks into these galleries, one will see that there will be just Inuit art and perhaps Native art but none of the other normal tourist keepsakes such as postcards or tee shirts . These galleries will have only genuine Inuit art for sale as they do not deal with phonies or imitations . Simply to be even safer, make certain that the piece you are interested in features a Canadian government Igloo tag licensing that it was handmade by a Canadian Inuit artist. The Inuit sculpture might be signed by the carver either in English or Inuit syllabics but not all authentic pieces are signed. Be mindful that an unsigned piece might still be undoubtedly authentic.
Some of these Inuit art galleries likewise have sites so you might go shopping and purchase authentic Inuit art sculpture from home anywhere in the world. In addition to these street retail specialty galleries, there are now respectable online galleries that also specialize in authentic Inuit art.
Some tourist stores do bring genuine Inuit art in addition to the other touristy mementos in order to cater to all types of travelers. When shopping at these kinds of stores, it is possible to tell apart the real pieces from the recreations. Genuine Inuit sculpture is carved from stone and therefore should have some weight or mass to it. Stone is likewise cold to the touch. A recreation 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 in some cases have a company name on it such as Wolf Originals or Boma and will never include an artist's signature. An authentic Inuit sculpture is a one of a kind piece of artwork and nothing else on the shop racks will look exactly like it. The piece is not authentic if there are duplicates of a particular piece with exact details. It is most likely not real if a piece looks too best in detail with outright straight bottoms or sides. Obviously, if a piece features a sticker label indicating that is was made in an Asian nation, then it is undoubtedly a fake. There will also be a huge cost difference in between genuine pieces and the imitations.
Where it becomes harder to determine credibility 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 might even have some type of tag suggesting that it was handcrafted however if there are other pieces on the shelves that look too comparable in detail, they are most likely not genuine. If a seller declares Kurt Criter Denver that such as piece is authentic, ask to see the official Igloo tag that includes it which will know on the artist, location where it was made and the year it was carved. If the Igloo tag is not available, proceed. The genuine pieces with the accompanying official Igloo tags will always be the highest priced and are normally kept in a different (perhaps even locked) shelf within the store.
Because Inuit art has been getting more and more international exposure, people may be seeing this Canadian fine art form 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 wonderful art work, then it can be securely assumed that any Inuit art piece purchased from a regional 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 devoted entirely to Inuit art. 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 likewise have sites so you could shop and purchase genuine Inuit art sculpture from home anywhere in the world.