A print is an art form that uses printing techniques such as etching, lithography, and screen print to transfer a composition from a surface to a piece of paper. One advantage of this process is that numerous impressions can be made from a single composition. The artist determines the number of prints to make for an edition, and usually signs and numbers each individual piece.
Depending on the process used and the artist who made them, prints can be cheap or very expensive. Limited edition, or a series of identical prints which are limited to a one-time printing of a certain number of pieces, and those made by well-known artists are highly-valuable and most-sought after.
When shipping art prints, proper packing is a must to ensure that they arrive in excellent condition. Here are some tips on how to properly pack and ship art prints to avoid damages during transit.
Art prints that are 8×10 inches or smaller can be sandwich between two pieces of cardboard that are cut a little larger than the prints. Secure the four sides of the cardboard with tape, preferably blue painter’s tape, to avoid any adhesive material from accidentally sticking into the print. Insert the protected prints in a cardboard envelope and seal with packing tape. Address the envelope and label with “Do not bend” in bold letters before mailing it off.
For larger prints, a cardboard tube makes an excellent shipping container. These tubes are available from the post office, a shipping store, or even art stores. They come in different sizes so you need to get the size that will fit your print, in length, and circumference.
Roll the print in some brown packing paper and tape the roll so it doesn’t come undone. Make sure that you only tape the packing paper and not the print itself to avoid damage from adhesive residue. Roll the print smaller than your tube, so it can easily slide out without getting damaged.
Before inserting the rolled print into the tube, tape a piece of paper with your address and the recipient’s address on the packing paper. This will come handy in case the address on the package gets damaged or becomes unreadable.
Insert the rolled up print inside the tube. Fill any excess space in the tube with bubble wrap to prevent the print from shifting or moving around while in transit. Tape both ends of the tube with packaging tape. Make sure that caps on both ends are secured and will not pop out during transit.
Address and label the tube and take it to the post office or shipping company of your choice.