Tips on How to Buy and Shop for Authentic Canadian Inuit Art (Eskimo Art) Sculptures
Numerous visitors to Canada will be exposed to Inuit art (Eskimo art) sculptures while visiting the nation. Given that Inuit art has been getting more and more global direct exposure, individuals may be seeing this Canadian great art form at museums and galleries situated outside Canada too. Assuming that the objective is to acquire an authentic piece of Inuit art rather than a inexpensive traveler replica, the concern develops on how does one inform apart the real thing from the fakes?
It would be pretty disappointing to bring home a piece just to find out later on that it isn't really genuine and even made in Canada. If one is lucky enough to be traveling in the Canadian Arctic where the Inuit live and make their fantastic artwork, then it can be safely assumed that any Inuit art piece purchased from a local northern store or directly from an Inuit carver would be authentic. One would have to be more cautious somewhere else in Canada, particularly in traveler locations where all sorts of other Canadian souvenirs such as t-shirts, hockey jerseys, postcards, key chains, maple syrup, and other Native Canadian arts are offered.
The safest places to shop for Inuit sculptures to guarantee authenticity are always the reputable galleries that specialize in Canadian Inuit art and Eskimo art. A few of these galleries have ads in the city tour guide discovered in hotels.
Credible Inuit art galleries are also noted in Inuit Art Quarterly magazine which is devoted totally to Inuit art. When one strolls into these galleries, one will see that there will be only Inuit art and perhaps Native art but none of the other normal traveler souvenirs such as tee shirts or postcards . The Inuit sculpture might 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 purchase authentic Inuit art sculpture from home anywhere in the world. In addition to these street retail specialty galleries, there are now reliable online galleries that also specialize in genuine Inuit art.
Some traveler shops do carry genuine Inuit art as well as the other touristy mementos in order to cater to all types of travelers. Authentic Inuit sculpture is sculpted from stone and for that reason 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 ends up being harder to identify authenticity find are with the reproductions that are likewise made from stone. This can be a genuine gray area to those not familiar with genuine Inuit art. They do have mass and may even have some type of tag suggesting that it was handcrafted but if there are other pieces on the shelves that look too comparable in detail, they are probably not genuine. If a seller claims that such as piece is authentic, ask to see the main Igloo tag that features it which will Kurt Criter Denver have information on the artist, place where it was made and the year it was sculpted. If the Igloo tag is not available, proceed. The genuine pieces with the accompanying official Igloo tags will always be the greatest priced and are typically kept in a different ( maybe even locked) rack within the shop.
Because Inuit art has been getting more and more global direct exposure, individuals might be seeing this Canadian fine art form at museums and galleries situated 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 can be safely assumed that any Inuit art piece purchased from a regional northern store or directly from an Inuit carver would be authentic. Trusted Inuit Kurt Criter Denver art galleries are also listed in Inuit Art Quarterly publication which is dedicated entirely to Inuit art. The Inuit sculpture may be signed by the carver either in English or Inuit syllabics however not all genuine pieces are signed. Some of these Inuit art galleries also have websites so you could shop and buy genuine Inuit art sculpture from home anywhere in the world.