We’re often asked by collectors or artists how to properly package artworks, and we often help out. I thought I would share here what we say.
When not to package artwork yourself
We would recommend to always use a professional art handler to pack and/or crate your artwork in any of the following conditions:
- The artwork is worth more than $10,000
- The artwork is an unframed painting, mixed media or work on paper
- The artwork is framed, but larger than 60 inch x 60 inch
- The artwork is a sculpture or installation
You can find a great list of art handlers with reviews on the Clariton List, or get quotes from multiple handlers directly online using shiparta.com (only for US domestic shipping at the moment). Update 11/5, Shiparta is telling me they are now experimenting with International shipping as well.
At ArtList, we sell several artworks from leading artists each week — from paintings like this one by Albert Oehlen to limited edition works like this one by Tauba Auerbach, so we often deal with shipping . We always recommend a professional art handler for these kinds of artwork.
How to properly pack a framed artwork
If the artwork is framed, worth less than $10,000 and smaller than 60 inch x 60 inch, you may want to consider packing and shipping the artwork yourself. This is our recommendation:
- Find a box or build a crate that can fit the piece, with 3 inches of space available on all sides of the frame.
- Wrap you artwork with one layer of acid-free tissue paper.
- Wrap the piece in bubble wrap, ensuring adequate coverage on the corners since they are most susceptible to damage during transport.
- Place a layer of foam or your packaging material of choice in the box, creating a layer to rest the frame on.
- Pack all open areas surrounding the piece with packing material. The more snug the fit, the less the potential for damage.
Remember to properly insure the piece if necessary and to clearly mark the box as fragile.
Shipping your packed artwork
Once properly packed, you can use any of the traditional shippers — for example UPS, Fedex, DHL. Unfortunately no centralized way exists to get relevant quotes so you have to go to the individual websites of each transporter.
Insure the artwork accordingly with the transporter.
Voila!
Questions? feedback? write us on contact@artlist.co
You can find hundreds of artworks by some of the most sought after artists today on artlist.co
