Tips on How to Purchase and Look For Authentic 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 worldwide exposure, individuals may be seeing this Canadian great art type at galleries and museums located outside Canada too. Assuming that the intent is to acquire an authentic piece of Inuit art rather than a inexpensive tourist imitation, the concern emerges on how does one inform apart the genuine thing from the fakes?
It would be pretty disappointing to bring home a piece only to discover later that it isn't really genuine or even made in Canada. If one is fortunate 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 straight from an Inuit carver would be authentic. One would have to be more mindful elsewhere in Canada, especially in tourist areas where all sorts of other Canadian mementos such as t-shirts, hockey jerseys, postcards, essential chains, maple syrup, and other Native Canadian arts are offered.
The most safe places to shop for Inuit sculptures to make sure authenticity are always the trusted galleries that focus on Canadian Inuit art and Eskimo art. Some of these galleries have advertisements in the city tour guide discovered in hotels.
Credible Inuit art galleries are likewise noted in Inuit Art Quarterly magazine which is devoted completely to Inuit art. These galleries will generally be found in the downtown traveler areas of significant cities. When one walks into these galleries, one will see that there will be only Inuit art and perhaps Native art however none of the other usual traveler keepsakes such as postcards or t-shirts . These galleries will have just authentic Inuit art for sale as they do not deal with phonies or replicas . Just to be even safer, make sure that the piece you are interested in comes with a Canadian federal government Igloo tag accrediting that it was handcrafted by a Canadian Inuit artist. The Inuit sculpture may be signed by the carver either in English or Inuit syllabics however not all authentic pieces are signed. Be mindful that an anonymous piece might still be indeed genuine.
Some of these Inuit art galleries also have sites so you might shop and buy authentic Inuit art sculpture from home anywhere in the world. In addition to these street retail specialty galleries, there are now trusted online galleries that also specialize in authentic Inuit art.
Some tourist stores do carry genuine Inuit art in addition to the other touristy souvenirs in order to deal with all types of travelers. When shopping at these types of stores, it is possible to differentiate the genuine pieces from the recreations. Authentic Inuit sculpture is sculpted 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 sometimes have a company 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 shop racks will look exactly like it. If there are duplicates of a particular piece with precise details, the piece is not genuine. It is most likely not real if a piece looks too perfect in detail with outright straight bottoms or sides. Naturally, if a piece features a sticker label showing that is was made in an Asian country, then it is certainly a fake. There will likewise be a substantial cost difference between genuine pieces and the imitations.
Where it ends up being harder to identify credibility are with the recreations 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 suggesting that it was handmade however if there are other pieces on the shelves that look too similar in detail, they are most likely not genuine. If a seller claims that such as piece is authentic, ask to see the main Igloo tag that comes with it which will have information on the artist, location where it was made and the year it was sculpted. If the Igloo tag is not available, carry on. The genuine pieces with the accompanying official Igloo tags will always be the highest priced and are usually kept in a separate ( maybe even locked) rack within the store.
Because Inuit art has actually been getting more and more international exposure, individuals might be seeing this Canadian fine art form at museums and galleries situated outside Canada too. If one is fortunate enough to be traveling in the Canadian Arctic where the Inuit live and make their wonderful artwork, then it can be securely assumed that any Inuit art piece acquired from a local northern shop or directly from an Inuit carver Website would be authentic. Reputable Inuit art galleries are also noted in Inuit Art Quarterly magazine 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 purchase authentic Inuit art sculpture from house anywhere in the world.