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Tips On How To Buy And Shop For Authentic Native Indian Carvings

Many visitors to the Pacific Northwest will be exposed to Native Indian art while touring the region, especially in British Columbia. Among this aboriginal artwork are the magnificent hand made Pacific Northwest Native Indian wood carvings by the Canadian aboriginal artists in BC. While in some of the major Canadian cities (Toronto, Vancouver and Montreal) or other tourist areas popular with international visitors such as Banff, such carvings will be seen at various retail shops and displayed at some museums as well as some public areas such as parks. Since Pacific Northwest Native Indian art has been getting more international exposure, people may be seeing this aboriginal fine art form at galleries and museums located outside the Northwest too.

As a result, many tourists and art collectors will decide to purchase Native Indian art as nice souvenirs for their homes or as very unique gifts for others. Assuming that the intention is to acquire an authentic piece rather than a cheap tourist imitation, the question arises on how does one tell apart the real thing from the fakes? It would be pretty disappointing to bring home a piece bought in Vancouver only to find out later that it isn’t authentic or even made in Canada. One would have to be careful in tourist areas where all sorts of other souvenirs such as t-shirts, hockey jerseys, postcards, key chains, maple syrup and other Canadian items are sold.

The safest places to shop for Pacific Northwest Native Indian art carvings to ensure authenticity are always the reputable galleries that specialize in Native Indian art. Some of these galleries have advertisements in the city tourist guides found in hotels. Reputable Native Indian art galleries are also listed in magazines which focus on Native art such as American Indian Art and Native Peoples. These galleries will usually be located in the downtown tourist areas of major cities or within Indian reservations. When one walks into these galleries, one will see that there will be only Native Indian art and none of the other usual tourist souvenirs such as t-shirts or postcards. These galleries will have only authentic Native Indian art for sale as they do not deal with imitations or fakes. The carvings are usually signed by the carver.

Some of t
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hese galleries also have websites so you could shop and buy authentic Native Indian carvings from home anywhere in the world. In addition to these street retail specialty galleries, there are now reputable online galleries that also specialize in authentic Native Indian art. These online galleries are a good option for buying art since the prices are usually lower than those at street retail galleries due to lower overheads. Of course, like any other shopping on the internet, one must be careful so when dealing with an online gallery, make sure that their pieces have information on the actual artist or carver to ensure authenticity.

Some tourist shops do carry authentic Native Indian art as well as the other touristy souvenirs in order to cater to all types of tourists. When shopping at these types of stores, it is possible to tell apart the real pieces from the reproductions. Authentic Native Indian carvings are carved from wood. Reproductions are made of plastic or resin from a mold will be much lighter in weight. A reproduction will sometimes have a company name on it and will never feature an artist’s signature.

An authentic Native Indian carving is a one of a kind piece of artwork and nothing else on the store shelves will look exactly like it. If there are duplicates of a certain piece with exact details, the piece is not authentic. If a piece looks too perfect in detail with absolute straight bottoms or sides like the fake totem poles shown in the previous chapter, it is probably not real. Of course, if a piece features a sticker indicating that is was made in an Asian country, then it is obviously a fake. There will also be a huge price difference between authentic pieces and the imitations.

Where it becomes more difficult to determine authenticity are with the reproductions that are also made of wood or some type of wood composite. This can be a real gray area to those unfamiliar with authentic Native Indian art. They may even have some type of tag indicating that it was hand made or painted but if there are other pieces on the shelves that look too similar in detail, they are most likely crafts produced in large quantities rather than authentic fine art originals. The authentic pieces will always be the highest priced and are usually kept in a separate shelf or wall within the store.

By: Clint Leung

Article Directory: http://www.articledashboard.com

Clint Leung is owner of Free Spirit Gallery (www.FreeSpiritGallery.ca) , an online gallery specializing in Inuit Eskimo and Northwest Native American art including carvings, sculpture and prints. Free Spirit Gallery has numerous information resource articles with photos of authentic Inuit and Native Indian art as well as free eCards.

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Vancouver, BC has been named several times over as the “Best City in the Americas” by Condé Nast Traveler’s annual Readers’ Choice Awards. The city also ranked #1 on The Economist’s survey of the “World’s Most Livable Cities” for six years running, and in 2008 was voted one of the best places to live by Mercer Consulting in their “Quality of Living Survey 2008.”

Clearly, Vancouver is a very special city. It offers residents breathtaking views of the mountains, inviting beaches, and ample green space. Vancouver has become a premier destination for real estate buyers from around the world.

For both personal home buyers and real estate investors, an area’s economy plays a critical role in the decision to buy. They’re looking for an area that can provide a solid base for many years to come.

Vancouver has a strong and varied economy that has proven to be resilient in tough times, leaving residents feeling secure today, and hopeful for the future. From major Hollywood film productions to international trade, Vancouver offers its residents employment prospects in every sector.

Port Metro Vancouver is the nation’s largest port, and trades more than $75 billion in goods with international partners each year. Such a vibrant trade operation has led to thousands of jobs being created (the number of port-related jobs that have been created across Canada is estimated to be nearly 130,000). In addition, the port also welcomes more than half a million visitors each year who are embarking on cruises to Alaska. These visitors spend their dollars at local shops and eateries, and pour a great deal of money into Vancouver’s economy.

Cruise ships are just one way that visitors come to the Greater Vancouver area. With the distinguished Vancouver International Airport located about an hour’s drive from Downtown, tourists from every part of the globe find it easy to get to and from the city. There’s also highway access to/from other parts of the province, as well as border crossings to the United States. With so many visitors travelling to Vancouver, the tourism and hospitality industry continues to be one of the area’s largest employment sectors.

Vancouver has also become a well-known destination for Hollywood film and television productions. The city is lauded for its chameleon-like ability to resemble other locales. “Hollywood North” as the city is known, is right behind Los Angeles and New York in terms of film production, which makes this a great place to live if you’re employed in the creative arts.

High tech firms love Vancouver because of the availability of highly skilled graduates and the city’s overall livability. Construction also continues to employ a large number of people, thanks to the steady demand for commercial and residential space in the metro area, and also due to the upcoming Olympics.

In addition to the city’s excellent economic health, Vancouver is also known for its profusion of educational opportunities. Vancouver is home to two of the country’s top universities, Simon Fraser University and the University of British Columbia. A number of colleges are also located in the area, as well as the Vancouver Film School and the Emily Carr University of Art + Design.

For younger students, there are 18 secondary schools, more than 70 elementary schools, and several private schools in the region.

In terms of housing, the Vancouver real estate market continues to be strong despite a slump in many other markets around North America.

Vancouver is home to some of the most expensive housing in Canada, though prices have been dropping in recent months. While the struggling international economy does play a role in the slowing down of Vancouver’s housing market, property values are dropping more as a result of an inevitable price correction. Housing prices had been increasing at an incredible pace for several years, making real estate in Vancouver inaccessible to a large number of people.

According to the Real Estate Board of Greater Vancouver, the price of detached homes increased by almost 70% between 2003 and 2008, while condo prices increased by approximately 82%. Over the past several months, real estate prices have decreased by about 12%. Properties are still holding onto much of their value, which is good news for sellers, yet the market is becoming more affordable, which is great news for buyers.

To learn about the unique lifestyle that Vancouver can provide, check out the continuation of this article: “Relocating to Vancouver: Fresh Urban Living.”

Mike Andruff leads one of the top firms in the Vancouver real estate industry. To find Vancouver’s West End properties, be sure to visit Mike and his team at VancouverPropertyFinder.com.

Article Source:

http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Mike_Andruff

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Ok so you might find the next few links interesting. These are from around the web, just random snippets that I’ve picked up in my reading, but I found some very cool information in them. You might too. Here goes…

BMO Bank of Montreal Launches Banking Package for Newcomers

In Toronto and Vancouver alone, there were approximately 87000 and 37500 immigrants, respectively. "As Canada's first bank, BMO has always made supporting …   Read More…

Australia World Cup soccer fans: Socceroos come of age, but they may be too old

… Vancouver Sun May 19, 2010 11:02 AM Socceroo fan Clay Adams was born in Melbourne and has witnessed a revival of the soccer program in his first home …   Read More…

Is BC Ready for Smart Meters?

In 2007, Premier Gordon Campbell told delegates at the annual convention of the Union of BC Municipalities that within five years, 1.7 million homes and …   Read More…
That’s all the news for today guys, so until next time, thanks for stopping by.

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