There are many reasons that can lead to the movement of a work of art: the moment of acquisition, a change of display location, safekeeping in an art storage facility, renovation of the premises, a loan for an exhibition, the moment of selling it. In all these cases, taking an artwork from where it stands to another point, even within the same building, requires planning, experienced labour, and one more indispensable item: packing.
Soft packing: for short moves
Packing a work of art, whether a canvas, a sculpture or an installation, is an extremely specialised activity that requires knowledge of techniques, materials and expertise so that the object is effectively protected in the best possible way. In some cases, when the move is quick and the piece will not remain packed for long, so-called soft packing can be an alternative. This is packing made with layers of cardboard, acrylic batting and glassine paper, an acid-free product used worldwide in the conservation and housing of fragile materials.
Museum-standard crates: for long journeys
For longer storage periods or more extensive moves, for example a journey by truck or plane, the ideal is to work with museum-standard crates. These are crates made to measure for each piece or set of pieces, designed to ensure that the object will remain stable and cushioned during transport, as well as protected from humidity, direct light and other risk factors. Crates like these are made not only of wood, but also with special foams inside.
Crating for large-scale sculpture
In the case of large sculptures, it is not always possible to house them whole inside a crate. This type of piece can be protected in a kind of wooden lattice crate, a structure also built to measure, but open-sided, which protects the piece from impacts and assists in handling. And, of course, everyone involved in moving, packing and unpacking must know the specific procedures of this activity and wear gloves whenever they need to handle the objects directly.
Bespoke packing
Clé Chenue do Brasil brings fine art transport and storage together in a single operation and maintains its own woodworking shop for building made-to-measure museum-standard crates and packing. That way, we offer a complete storage and transport solution for your pieces. Talk to one of our specialists.
