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



Numerous visitors to Canada will be exposed to Inuit art (Eskimo art) sculptures while exploring the country. Because Inuit art has been getting more and more global direct exposure, individuals might be seeing this Canadian fine art kind at galleries and museums situated outside Canada too. Assuming that the intention is to obtain an authentic piece of Inuit art rather than a low-cost tourist imitation, the question occurs on how does one inform apart the real thing from the fakes?

It would be quite disappointing to bring home a piece only to find out later on that it isn't really genuine or perhaps 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 securely assumed that any Inuit art piece bought from a local northern store or directly from an Inuit carver would be genuine. One would have to be more cautious somewhere else in Canada, specifically in traveler locations where all sorts of other Canadian mementos such as tee shirts, hockey jerseys, postcards, key chains, maple syrup, and other Native Canadian arts are sold.

The most safe locations to shop for Inuit sculptures to ensure credibility are always the respectable galleries that specialize in Canadian Inuit art and Eskimo art. Some of these galleries have ads in the city tour guide found in hotels.

Credible Inuit art galleries are likewise listed in Inuit Art Quarterly publication which is devoted totally to Inuit art. When one strolls into these galleries, one will see that there will be just Inuit art and maybe Native art but none of the other usual tourist souvenirs such as postcards or t-shirts . 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 sites so you might go shopping and buy authentic Inuit art sculpture from house anywhere in the world. In addition to these street retail specialized galleries, there are now credible online galleries that likewise specialize in genuine Inuit art.

Some tourist shops do bring genuine Inuit art along with the other touristy keepsakes in order to deal with all types of tourists. When shopping at these kinds of shops, it is possible to tell apart the genuine pieces from the reproductions. Authentic Inuit sculpture is sculpted from stone and for that reason ought to have some weight or mass to it. Stone is likewise cold to the touch. A recreation made of plastic discover here 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 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 absolutely nothing else on the shop racks will look precisely like it. The piece is not authentic if there are duplicates of a certain piece with specific details. It is most likely not genuine if a piece looks too perfect in detail with absolute straight bottoms or sides. Obviously, if a piece features a sticker label suggesting that is was made in an Asian country, then it is clearly a fake. There will also be a huge price difference in between genuine pieces and the replicas.

Where it becomes harder to identify authenticity are with the recreations that are likewise made of stone. This can be a genuine gray area to those not familiar with genuine 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 similar in detail, they are probably not genuine. If a seller claims that such as piece is authentic, ask to see the main Igloo tag that features it which will have information on the artist, area where it was made and the year it was carved. Move on if the Igloo tag is not offered. The authentic pieces with the accompanying official Igloo tags will constantly be the highest priced and are typically kept in a separate (perhaps 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 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 fantastic art work, then it can be securely presumed that any Inuit art piece bought from a regional northern store or straight from an Inuit carver would be authentic. Trusted Inuit art galleries are also listed in Inuit Art Quarterly publication which is dedicated completely to Inuit art. The Inuit sculpture might be signed by the carver either in English or Inuit syllabics but not all authentic pieces are signed. Some of these Inuit art galleries likewise have sites so you could shop and purchase authentic Inuit art sculpture from home anywhere in the world.

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