Tips on How to Buy and Buy Authentic Canadian Inuit Art (Eskimo Art) Sculptures



Many visitors to Canada will be exposed to Inuit art (Eskimo art) sculptures while touring the nation. These are the splendid handmade sculptures carved from stone by the Inuit artists residing in the northern Arctic areas of Canada. While in a few of the major Canadian cities (Toronto, Vancouver, Montreal, Ottawa, and Quebec City) or other tourist areas popular with worldwide visitors such as Banff, Inuit sculptures will be seen at different retail shops and showed at some museums. Given that Inuit art has actually been getting increasingly more worldwide exposure, individuals might be seeing this Canadian art kind at museums and galleries located outside Canada too. As a result, it will be natural for numerous travelers and art collectors to choose that they would like to buy Inuit sculptures as nice keepsakes for their homes or as really unique gifts for others. Presuming that the intention is to acquire an genuine piece of Inuit art rather than a low-cost tourist replica, the concern emerges on how does one differentiate the genuine thing from the fakes?

It would be pretty frustrating to bring home a piece only to find out later that it isn't really authentic or even made in Canada. If one is fortunate enough to be taking a trip in the Canadian Arctic where the Inuit live and make their fantastic art work, then it can be safely assumed 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 cautious in other places in Canada, especially in tourist locations 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 most safe places to shop for Inuit sculptures to make sure authenticity are always the reliable galleries that specialize in 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 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 just Inuit art and possibly Native art but none of the other normal 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.

Some of these Inuit art galleries also have sites so you could go shopping and purchase genuine Inuit art sculpture from house anywhere in the world. In addition to these street retail specialty galleries, there are now respectable online galleries that likewise focus on authentic Inuit art. These online galleries are a excellent choice for purchasing Inuit art since the rates are normally lower than those at street retail galleries because of lower overheads. Obviously, like other shopping on the internet, one need to take care so when handling an online gallery, make sure this contact form that their pieces also come with the main Igloo tags to ensure authenticity.

Some tourist stores do carry authentic Inuit art as well as the other touristy keepsakes in order to accommodate all kinds of tourists. When shopping at these types of shops, it is possible to tell apart the real pieces from the reproductions. Authentic Inuit sculpture is sculpted from stone and therefore ought to have some weight or mass to it. Stone is likewise cold to the touch. A reproduction made from plastic or resin from a mold will be much lighter in weight and will not be cold to the touch. A recreation will often have a company name on it such as Wolf Originals or Boma and will never ever include an artist's signature. An you can try this out genuine Inuit sculpture is a one of a kind piece of artwork and nothing else on the shop racks will look exactly like it. The piece is not authentic if there are duplicates of a certain piece with specific details. It is most likely not real if a piece looks too perfect in information with outright straight bottoms or sides. Naturally, if a piece includes a sticker showing that is was made in an Asian nation, then it is obviously a fake. There will also be a huge cost distinction between authentic pieces and the replicas.

Where it becomes harder to figure out credibility are with the reproductions 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 kind of tag showing that it was handmade but if there are other pieces on the shelves that look too similar in detail, they are probably 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, place where it was made and the year it was carved. If the Igloo tag is not offered, move on. The genuine pieces with the accompanying official Igloo tags will always be the greatest priced and are generally kept in a different ( maybe even locked) shelf within the shop.


Considering that Inuit art has been getting more and more global exposure, individuals might be seeing this Canadian great art form at museums and galleries located outside Canada too. 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 securely assumed that any Inuit art piece bought from a regional northern shop or straight from an Inuit carver would be genuine. Trusted Inuit art galleries are likewise listed in Inuit Art Quarterly magazine which is dedicated entirely to Inuit art. The Inuit sculpture might be signed by the carver either in English or Inuit syllabics however not all authentic pieces are signed. Some of these Inuit art galleries likewise have websites so you could shop and buy genuine Inuit art sculpture from house anywhere in the world.

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