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 country. Given that Inuit art has been getting more and more worldwide direct exposure, people may be seeing this Canadian great art kind at museums and galleries located outside Canada too. Assuming that the intent is to acquire an genuine piece of Inuit art rather than a inexpensive tourist imitation, the concern occurs on how does one inform apart the genuine thing from the phonies?

It would be quite disappointing to bring home a piece just to discover later on that it isn't genuine or 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 securely assumed that any Inuit art piece purchased from a regional northern store or straight from an Inuit carver would be genuine. One would have to be more cautious in other places in Canada, specifically in traveler areas where all sorts of other Canadian keepsakes such as t-shirts, hockey jerseys, postcards, crucial chains, maple syrup, and other Native Canadian arts are offered.

The most safe locations to purchase Inuit sculptures to make sure credibility are always the trusted galleries that concentrate on Canadian Inuit art and Eskimo art. A few 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 adheres entirely to Inuit art. These galleries will typically be found in the downtown traveler locations of significant cities. When one walks into these galleries, one will see that there will be just Inuit art and possibly Native art however none of the other normal traveler mementos such as tee shirts or postcards . These galleries will have only genuine Inuit art for sale as they do not deal with phonies or replicas . Simply to be even safer, make sure that the piece you have an interest in features a Canadian federal government Igloo tag certifying that it was handmade 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 conscious that an anonymous piece may still be undoubtedly authentic.

Some of these Inuit art galleries also have sites so you might shop and buy genuine Inuit art sculpture from house anywhere in the world. In addition to these street retail link specialized galleries, there are now reputable online galleries that likewise specialize in authentic Inuit art.

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

This can be a genuine gray area to those unfamiliar with genuine Inuit art. If a seller claims that such as piece is authentic, ask to see the official Igloo tag that comes with it which will have details on the artist, location where it was made and the year it was sculpted. The authentic pieces with the accompanying official Igloo tags will constantly be the greatest priced and are normally kept in a separate ( possibly even locked) rack within the store.


Given that Inuit art has been getting more and more international direct exposure, people might be seeing this Canadian fine art kind at galleries and museums situated outside Canada too. 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 securely assumed that any Inuit art piece acquired from a regional northern shop or directly from an Inuit carver would be genuine. Respectable Inuit art galleries are likewise listed in Inuit Art Quarterly publication which is dedicated totally to Inuit art. The Inuit sculpture might be signed by the carver either in English or Inuit syllabics however not all genuine pieces are signed. Some of these Inuit Kurt Criter art galleries likewise have websites so you might shop and purchase genuine Inuit art sculpture from house anywhere in the world.