Posted 12 years ago
ralph
(167 items)
hi walksofly these are the pictures you asked me to post i would like to know moor about them i got them in Canada about 1950s 1960s or the name on the eskimos foot is akiter k that's all i know.
soapstone carvings | ||
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They are fantastic, do you know what region of Canada you bought them in?
they were bought in Quebec.
I've done some looking online for info on the artist, but no luck so far.
So much of the work by Inuit carvers was sold through co-operatives, so many artists remained somewhat unknown.
I suggest that you contact the Winnipeg Art Gallery, as they have a significant collection of Inuit art.
Link to their site;
http://wag.ca/art/collections/inuit-art/
You should contact the curator of the Inuit collection at;
curator- inuit@wag.ca
curators name is
Darlene Coward Wight
Yes, these are Inuit. I have seen them on an antiques program. A British went out there in the 50s and encouraged them to do more of their own work. If it is from that period it is supposed to be the best, and is quite valuable. Someone who is knowledgeable in this art should even be able to tell which village each piece came from due to the colour of the stone used. Good luck in figuring that one out.
I have one very similar!!! We think the same!! Take me to the Philippines!
Hello Ralph, I found one of these carvings as well . Look up an Inuit Syllabics chart online. Each symbol on the bottom is a letter or syllabic which will give you the artists name. The number on the bottom is a newer version of artist's Canadian Disc ID. From 1940 to 1970 or so they all started with letters for the region and then the numbers to ID the artist. So your's may be newer than say 40's to 70's. This time frame is where the most valuable pieces are selling, from hundreds to tens of thousands. It all depends on the subject and how well known that particular artist is or was .Here's a great site I used to try and value my find.
http://katilvik.com . They do appraisals and are affiliated with the Waddington's auction gallery in Toronto. They specialize in Inuit art. I'm waiting to hear from them. Could be some big bucks you never know. -Mike-