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 visiting the country. Given that Inuit art has actually been getting more and more international direct exposure, individuals might be seeing this Canadian fine art form at museums and galleries situated outside Canada too. Assuming that the objective is to get an genuine piece of Inuit art rather than a cheap traveler imitation, the question occurs on how does one tell apart the genuine thing from the phonies?
It would be quite frustrating to bring home a piece only to learn later that it isn't genuine or perhaps made in Canada. If one is lucky enough to be taking a trip in the Canadian Arctic where the Inuit live and make their fantastic artwork, then it can be securely presumed that any Inuit art piece purchased from a regional northern store or straight from an Inuit carver would be authentic. One would need to be more careful elsewhere in Canada, specifically in traveler areas where all sorts of other Canadian keepsakes such as t-shirts, hockey jerseys, postcards, key chains, maple syrup, and other Native Canadian arts are sold.
The most safe locations to look for Inuit sculptures to make sure authenticity are always the trustworthy galleries that concentrate on Canadian Inuit art and Eskimo art. A few of these galleries have advertisements in the city tourist guides found in hotels.
Reputable Inuit art galleries are also noted in Inuit Art Quarterly publication which is dedicated completely to Inuit art. When one strolls into these galleries, one will see that there will be only Inuit art and maybe Native art however none of the other usual traveler souvenirs such as t-shirts or postcards . The Inuit sculpture may be signed by the carver either in English or Inuit syllabics but not all genuine pieces are signed.
A few of these Inuit art galleries likewise have websites so you might go shopping and buy 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 likewise focus on authentic Inuit art. Because of lower overheads, these online galleries are a good option for buying Inuit art given that the rates are generally lower than those at street retail galleries. Of course, like any other shopping on the internet, one need to take care so when handling an online gallery, make certain that their pieces also come with the official Igloo tags to guarantee authenticity.
Some traveler stores do bring genuine Inuit art along with the other touristy mementos in order to accommodate all types of tourists. When shopping at these kinds of stores, it is possible to tell apart the real pieces from the recreations. Genuine Inuit sculpture reference is sculpted from stone and therefore must have some weight or mass to it. Stone is also cold to the touch. A recreation made of plastic or resin from a mold will be much lighter in weight and will not be cold to the touch. A reproduction will sometimes have a business 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 art work and nothing else on the shop shelves will look exactly like it. If there are duplicates of a certain piece with exact information, the piece is not authentic. If a piece looks too perfect in detail with outright straight bottoms or sides, it is probably not real. Obviously, if a piece features a sticker label indicating that is was made in an Asian country, then it is obviously a fake. There will likewise be a huge cost distinction in between genuine pieces and the replicas.
Where it ends up being harder to determine authenticity are with the recreations that are also made from stone. This can be a real gray area to those unfamiliar with authentic Inuit art. They do have mass and may even have some type of tag showing that it was handmade but if there are other pieces on the shelves that look too comparable in detail, they are more than likely not authentic. If a seller declares that such as piece is genuine, ask to see the official Igloo tag that includes it which will have information on the artist, area where it was made and the year it was carved. If the Igloo tag is not offered, carry on. The authentic pieces with the accompanying authorities Igloo tags will constantly be the highest priced and are generally kept in a different (perhaps even locked) shelf within the store.
Because Inuit art has actually been getting more and more international direct exposure, individuals might be seeing this Canadian great art kind 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 artwork, then it can be safely presumed that any Inuit art piece acquired from a regional northern shop or straight from an Inuit carver would be genuine. Reliable Inuit art galleries are also listed in Inuit Art Quarterly publication which is dedicated completely to Inuit art. The Inuit sculpture may 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 might shop and purchase authentic Inuit art sculpture from home anywhere in the world.