Inuit art sellers look to new markets as U.S. tariffs loom

This story was updated on Tuesday, August 11, 2026, at 1:30 p.m. ET.

Inuit artist and advocate Theresie Tungilik says artists should start looking for other markets as a looming 50 per cent tariff threatens to make Canadian artwork more expensive for American buyers.

United States President Donald Trump announced July 20 that he would impose additional 50 per cent tariffs on a range of Canadian imports, with the measures scheduled to take effect Aug. 19.

“If it’s going to happen, or we feel it is coming, now is the best time appraise and sell Inuit art at its best price and maybe start looking at other countries that truly love Inuit art and do not have a tariff on it,” said Tungilik, a past president of the national non-profit Canadian Artists’ Representation.

The White House says the tariffs are intended to offset what it describes as Canada’s discriminatory treatment of American commerce.

The tariff list includes paintings, drawings, pastels, original prints and original sculptures. 

The list also includes fur products, hides and skins, as well as whalebone, horn and antlers, among other materials Inuit use.

Under the Canada-United States-Mexico Agreement, or CUSMA, Canadian cultural goods generally have had tariff-free access to the U.S.

Tungilik pointed to France, Belgium and Italy, where Inuit have previously exhibited their artwork. 

The domestic market remains strong as well, Tungilik said, as many Inuit artists sell within their communities or directly to buyers across Canada.

“But for Inuit artists who have collectors in the U.S. and art institutions, it will be a downfall,” Tungilik said.

Patricia Feheley, owner of Toronto-based Feheley Fine Arts, said the U.S. has long been an important market for Inuit art and that a 50 per cent tariff would be “prohibitive.” 

U.S. buyers have benefited from the weaker Canadian dollar, which has made buying Canadian and Inuit artwork less expensive. A tariff would negate that advantage. 

A sculpture priced at about US$1,440 (CAD$2,000), would face a US$720 duty under a 50 per cent tariff, bringing the buyer’s total cost to roughly US$2,160 (CAD$3,000), said Feheley. 

Some of her American clients have already asked to have purchases shipped before Aug. 19, she said. 

Mark London, owner of Galerie Elca London, a gallery in Knowlton, Quebec, that specializes in Inuit art, is offering a 15 per cent discount through Aug. 14 to both American and Canadian clients to encourage them to buy before the deadline. 

“People are either going to stop buying, or they’re going to buy far less, or American collectors will just buy what is already in the United States,” London said, adding that the Inuit art market was already “diminishing” due to fewer collectors with disposable income. 

Liz Barron, director of the Indigenous Curatorial Collective and a member of the Visual Arts Alliance, said the tariffs could discourage cross-border exhibitions and cultural exchange by making it more costly for U.S. museums and galleries to acquire Canadian artwork.

For now, the Art Dealers Association of Canada has taken the issue to the federal government.

The association has reached out to Global Affairs Canada, Export Development Canada and the office of Marc Miller, the federal minister of Canadian identity and culture, asking for an exemption for art under CUSMA and potential financial relief for artists and galleries, said executive director Mackenzie Sinclair.

Sinclair said she has yet to receive a response.

Nunatsiaq News also requested comment from the federal departments but did not receive a response by press time.

Correction: This story was updated to correct the location of Galerie Elca London.