Tips on How to Buy and Buy Authentic Canadian Inuit Art (Eskimo Art) Sculptures
Lots of visitors to Canada will be exposed to Inuit art (Eskimo art) sculptures while touring the country. Because Inuit art has actually been getting more and more global exposure, people may be seeing this Canadian fine art type at galleries and museums situated outside Canada too. Assuming that the objective is to obtain an authentic piece of Inuit art rather than a cheap tourist imitation, the question arises on how does one tell apart the real thing from the phonies?
It would be quite frustrating to bring home a piece only to discover later that it isn't 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 wonderful art work, then it can be safely presumed that any Inuit art piece bought from a local northern shop or directly from an Inuit carver would be authentic. One would need to be more careful somewhere else in Canada, particularly in tourist areas 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 best locations to buy Inuit sculptures to ensure credibility 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 found in hotels.
Trustworthy Inuit art galleries are likewise noted in Inuit Art Quarterly publication which is devoted entirely 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 typical traveler mementos such as postcards or tee shirts . 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 also have websites so you could shop and purchase authentic Inuit art sculpture from house anywhere in the world. In addition to these street retail specialty galleries, there are now credible online galleries that also specialize in authentic Inuit art.
Some traveler stores do carry genuine Inuit art along with the other touristy keepsakes in order to cater to all types of tourists. When shopping at these kinds of stores, it is possible to differentiate 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 also cold to the touch. A reproduction made of 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 business name on it such as Wolf Originals or Boma and will never feature an artist's signature. An authentic Inuit sculpture is a one of a kind piece of art work and absolutely nothing else on the store shelves will look exactly like it. If there are duplicates of a particular piece with specific information, the piece is not genuine. It is probably not real if a piece looks too perfect in information with outright straight bottoms or sides. Naturally, if a piece features a sticker indicating that is was made in an Asian nation, Kurt Criter then it is obviously a phony. There will likewise be a huge cost distinction between authentic pieces and the imitations.
Where it ends up being more difficult to figure out authenticity are with the reproductions that are also made from stone. This can be a real gray area to those unfamiliar with genuine Inuit art. They do have mass and may even have some kind of tag showing that it was handcrafted but if there are other pieces on the shelves that look too similar in detail, they are most likely not authentic. If a seller declares that such as piece is authentic, ask to see the main Igloo tag that includes it which will know on the artist, place where it was made and the year it was sculpted. If the Igloo tag is not offered, move on. The authentic pieces with the accompanying authorities Igloo tags will constantly be the greatest priced and are usually kept in a different (perhaps even locked) rack within the shop.
Considering that Inuit art has been getting more and more worldwide exposure, individuals may be seeing this Canadian fine art kind at galleries and museums 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 store or straight from an Inuit carver would be authentic. Credible Inuit art galleries are likewise listed in Inuit Art Quarterly publication which is devoted totally to Inuit art. 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 also have websites so you could go shopping and buy authentic Inuit art sculpture from home anywhere in the world.