Tips on How to Purchase and Shop for Genuine Canadian Inuit Art (Eskimo Art) Sculptures

Many visitors to Canada will be exposed to Inuit art (Eskimo art) sculptures while visiting the country. Since Inuit art has actually been getting more and more worldwide exposure, individuals may be seeing this Canadian fine art kind at museums and galleries located outside Canada too. Assuming that the objective is to acquire an authentic piece of Inuit art rather than a inexpensive traveler imitation, the concern occurs on how does one inform apart the real thing from the phonies?

It would be pretty frustrating to bring home a piece only to learn later that it isn't really genuine and even made in Canada. If one is lucky enough to be taking a trip in the Canadian Arctic where the Inuit live and make their wonderful artwork, then it can be safely presumed that any Inuit art piece purchased from a local northern shop or straight from an Inuit carver would be genuine. One would have to be more careful in other places in Canada, especially in tourist areas where all sorts of other Canadian mementos such as tee shirts, hockey jerseys, postcards, crucial chains, maple syrup, and other Native Canadian arts are sold.

The safest places to purchase Inuit sculptures to guarantee credibility are constantly the trustworthy galleries that specialize in Canadian Inuit art and Eskimo art. Some of these galleries have ads in the city tour guide discovered in hotels.

Reputable Inuit art galleries are likewise noted in Inuit Art Quarterly publication which is devoted completely to Inuit art. When one strolls into these galleries, one will see that there will be only Inuit art and perhaps Native art however none of the other normal tourist mementos such as tee shirts or postcards . The Inuit sculpture may 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 go shopping and purchase genuine Inuit art sculpture from house throughout the world. In addition to these street retail specialized galleries, there are now reliable online galleries that also focus on authentic click over here Inuit art. Because of lower overheads, these online galleries are a excellent alternative for buying Inuit art because the prices are usually lower than those at street retail galleries. Of course, like any other shopping on the internet, one must take care so when dealing with an online gallery, make sure that their pieces likewise include the main Igloo tags to guarantee authenticity.

Some tourist stores do carry genuine Inuit art as well as the other touristy keepsakes in order to cater to all types of travelers. Authentic Inuit sculpture is carved from stone and for that reason needs to have some weight or mass to it. An authentic Inuit sculpture is a one of a kind piece of art work and nothing else on the shop shelves will look precisely like it.

This can be a real gray location to those unknown with genuine Inuit art. If a seller declares that such as piece is genuine, ask to see the main Igloo tag that comes with it which will have info on the artist, area where it was made and the year it was carved. The authentic pieces with the accompanying official Igloo tags will always Kurt Criter Denver be the highest priced and are usually kept in a separate (perhaps even locked) shelf within the store.


Considering that Inuit art has been getting more and more worldwide exposure, people might be seeing this Canadian fine art form at museums and Kurt Criter Denver galleries situated outside Canada too. 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 presumed that any Inuit art piece acquired from a local northern store or straight from an Inuit carver would be genuine. Trustworthy Inuit art galleries are also noted 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 however not all genuine pieces are signed. Some of these Inuit art galleries also have sites so you could go shopping and purchase authentic Inuit art sculpture from house anywhere in the world.