If you find yourself in a position where you need to ship your artwork anywhere, a kind of apprehension sets-in. Fear of art shipping to New York from Los Angeles or simply being afraid to let your possessions anywhere out of the house is not unusual. Shipping art to anyplace locally or globally does raise some concerns. The question is, “What can you do about it?”
Basic Fears
Everyone, no matter how often they have arranged for art shipping, no matter if they have shipped art through this company successfully before, have certain fears. They usually hinge on fear of damage of some sort to their property. Among the most common ones are:
1. Damage from improper packing, crating or other forms of containment
2. Sloppy handling of sculptures or installations that cause cracks or other types of damage
3. Frames and/or glass are damaged during the packing, handling and/or shipping process
4. Instead of packing paintings flat, they are rolled improperly or folded. This, of course, results in damage – particularly among fragile artworks
5. Works are stored in facilities that lack cleanliness, proper security and even the very necessary climate control
6. Despite the guarantees to the otherwise, the art piece or installation or antique fails to arrive at the agreed upon time
7. During the transit of the artwork from your home to its destination, it goes missing, is stolen or simply disappears
These comprise part of any art creator or collector’s worst scenario. The simple plan of sending a piece of art from Los Angeles to New York, turns into one long and seemingly endless nightmare.
Ending Fears of Art Shipping
There is really only one way to end your fears of art shipping. You need to make certain that the company you hire to do your work is fully aware and truly understands all aspects of this highly specialized field of shipping. You need to find and employ a company that is singular in their ability to safely and securely
1. Pack – including proper methods of crating and handling
2. Store – they must be in possession of and use facilities that control the humidity and temperature of the facility. The storage units must be secure and safe for 24/7
3. Ship – the art shipping company must know the means and methods involved in safely and securely sending artworks locally, regionally, nationally and internationally. They must know all the ins-and-outs of export and import paperwork. They have to be up-to-date on what can and cannot enter a country and what can enter if the proper paperwork accompanies it.
By sorting through the prospective companies specializing in art shipping in New York and Los Angeles, using this criterion, you will be able to arrive at the best candidate for the job. In employing them, you are going a long way towards allaying your fears of art shipping if not completely putting them to rest.
