Exploring Inuit art from the Arctic north as potential investments, many people collect Inuit art as investments. Inuit art is growing
internationally but it has been suggested that the number of actual
Inuit artists are actually declining. The creation of the Nunavut
government which represents Canada's third official territory, has
resulted in many new employment opportunities for the Inuit,
particularly the younger ones.
Carving and the entire process of bringing back suitable stone from
distant quarries to their own communities are hard work for Inuit art
carvers. Many young Inuit prefer to pursue less physically demanding
careers such as regular nine to five, weekday only government office
occupations. As government offices grow, so will the local businesses
to support them which create even more local jobs for Inuit people.
These trends are not only affecting Inuit males but also females as well. As more young Inuit
women move towards a 'southern', i.e., more North American lifestyle,
Inuit art drawing, wall tapestry and doll making will be less
attractive skills to learn compared to office or retail skills.
Many master Inuit art carvers are also expert hunters. They get to see
the Arctic animals regularly resulting in excellent representations in
their Inuit carvings and other artwork. Many young Inuit these days
prefer not to hunt since northern community grocers have reduced a need
to hunt for food. As a result, the accuracy of carvings by some
younger, non-hunting Inuit artists may be affected since they may not
have the familiarity of Arctic animals like older master carvers do.
All of these developments may lead to the demand for good, high quality
Inuit art surpassing supply. This will in turn cause a future
appreciation of value for good Inuit art. Of course, characteristics of
each piece must be taken into consideration. However, most art experts
recommend against buying any type of art purely for investment purposes
only. Art should be appreciated for its esthetic value. If a certain
artwork doesn't increase in value as hoped, then at least one would
still have a lovely piece of art to look at. If one finds a piece of
Inuit art that he or she really likes and can afford, then it should be
purchased since the opportunity to own that one of a kind piece will
probably not come around again.
