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

Numerous visitors to Canada will be exposed to Inuit art (Eskimo art) sculptures while exploring the country. These are the splendid handmade sculptures sculpted from stone by the Inuit artists residing in the northern Arctic regions of Canada. While in a few of the major Canadian cities (Toronto, Vancouver, Montreal, Ottawa, and Quebec City) or other traveler areas popular with worldwide visitors such as Banff, Inuit sculptures will be seen at numerous retail shops and displayed at some museums. Since Inuit art has been getting increasingly more global direct exposure, individuals may be seeing this Canadian art type at museums and galleries situated outside Canada too. As a result, it will be natural for lots of travelers and art collectors to decide that they want to acquire Inuit sculptures as good mementos for their homes or as very special presents for others. Assuming that the objective is to acquire an authentic piece of Inuit art instead of a low-cost traveler imitation, the question occurs on how does one differentiate the real thing from the fakes?

It would be quite disappointing to bring home a piece just to find out later on that it isn't genuine or even made in Canada. If one is fortunate enough to be traveling in the Canadian Arctic where the Inuit live and make their terrific artwork, then it can be safely assumed that any Inuit art piece bought from a local northern store or directly from an Inuit carver would be authentic. One would have to be more mindful in other places in Canada, particularly 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 safest locations to look for Inuit sculptures to make sure authenticity are always the respectable 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 also listed in Inuit Art Quarterly magazine which adheres totally to Inuit art. These galleries will usually be found in the downtown tourist locations of major cities. 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 postcards or t-shirts . These galleries will have just genuine Inuit art for sale as they do not deal with phonies or imitations . Simply to be even safer, make certain that the piece you are interested in features a Canadian federal government Igloo tag certifying that it was handcrafted by a Canadian Inuit artist. The Inuit sculpture might be signed by the carver either in English or Inuit syllabics but not all genuine pieces are signed. So be aware that an anonymous piece might still be undoubtedly genuine.

Some of these Inuit art galleries also have sites so you might shop and buy genuine Inuit art sculpture from house throughout the world. In addition to these street retail specialty galleries, there are now trustworthy online galleries that also focus on authentic Inuit art. These online galleries are a good choice for buying Inuit art since the costs are usually lower than those at street retail galleries because of lower overheads. Naturally, like any other shopping on the internet, one must beware so when dealing with an online gallery, ensure that their pieces also come with the main Igloo tags to make sure credibility.

Some traveler stores do bring genuine Inuit art as well as the other Kurt Criter touristy souvenirs 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 authentic Inuit sculpture is a one of a kind piece of artwork and nothing else on the shop shelves will look precisely like it.

This can be a real gray location to those unknown with authentic Inuit art. If a seller claims that such as piece is authentic, ask to see the main Igloo tag that comes with it which will have information on the artist, place where it was made and the year it was carved. The authentic pieces with the accompanying official Igloo tags will always be the highest priced and are typically kept in a separate ( maybe even locked) shelf within the store.


Since Inuit art has actually been getting more and more international direct exposure, people might be seeing this Canadian fine art form 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 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 authentic. Reliable Inuit art galleries are likewise noted in Inuit Art Quarterly magazine which is devoted completely to Inuit art. The Inuit sculpture may be signed by the carver either in English or Inuit syllabics however not all authentic pieces are signed. Some of these Inuit art galleries also have websites so you might shop and purchase genuine Inuit art sculpture from house anywhere in the world.