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

Lots of visitors to Canada will be exposed to Inuit art (Eskimo art) sculptures while touring the nation. Because Inuit art has actually been getting more and more worldwide direct exposure, people may be seeing this Canadian great art type at museums and galleries located outside Canada too. Assuming that the intent is to obtain an genuine piece of Inuit art rather than a cheap traveler imitation, the question emerges on how does one tell apart the genuine thing from the fakes?

It would be pretty frustrating to bring home a piece just to find out later on that it isn't really authentic or perhaps made in Canada. If one is lucky enough to be traveling in the Canadian Arctic where the Inuit live and make their terrific artwork, then it can be safely presumed that any Inuit art piece bought from a local northern store or straight from an Inuit carver would be genuine. One would need to be more cautious in other places in Canada, especially in tourist locations where all sorts of other Canadian keepsakes such as t-shirts, hockey jerseys, postcards, essential chains, maple syrup, and other Native Canadian arts are offered.

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

Credible Inuit art galleries are likewise listed in Inuit Art Quarterly magazine which is dedicated totally to Inuit art. When one walks into these galleries, one will see that there will be only Inuit art and maybe Native art however none of the other typical tourist keepsakes such as postcards or t-shirts . 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 likewise have sites so you could go shopping and purchase authentic Inuit art sculpture from home anywhere in the world. In addition to these street retail specialized galleries, there are now trustworthy online galleries that likewise specialize in genuine Inuit art. Since of lower overheads, these online galleries are a good alternative for buying Inuit art since the costs are usually lower than those at street retail galleries. Naturally, like any other shopping on the internet, one need to be careful so when handling an online gallery, make sure that their pieces likewise come with the official Igloo tags to make sure authenticity.

Some traveler 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 needs to have some weight or mass to it. An genuine Inuit sculpture is a one of a kind piece of art work and nothing else on the store shelves will look exactly like it.

This can be a genuine gray area to those unknown with authentic Inuit art. If a seller declares that such as piece is genuine, 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 authorities Igloo tags will always be the greatest priced and are normally kept in a separate ( maybe even locked) rack within the store.


Since Inuit art has actually been getting more and more international direct exposure, people learn the facts here now may be seeing this Canadian great art type at galleries and museums situated outside Canada too. If one is lucky 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 presumed that any Inuit art piece purchased from a regional northern shop or directly from an Inuit carver would be genuine. Trusted Inuit art galleries are likewise listed in Inuit Art Quarterly publication 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. Kurt Criter Some of these Inuit art galleries also have sites so you could shop and purchase genuine Inuit art sculpture from home anywhere in the world.