Ship Art Internationally with PackageHopper

So, you sold an art piece, and now comes the part where you must ensure it gets to its new owner without a scratch. Knowing how to ship art safely to its destination country is a form of art itself.

PackageHopper wants the fastest and safest arrival of your goods, so in this article, we’ll discuss shipping art pieces like sculptures, prints, and framed artwork.

Shipping Sculptures

The safest way to ensure your sculpture’s safe arrival in one piece is to follow these three simple steps:

1. Wrap it in several layers of bubble wrap and secure it with tape. Make sure not to miss any spots – the sculpture should be covered entirely.
2. Find a sturdy box approximately 3” broader than the sculpture on each side and fill it with cushioning materials like packing peanuts or Styrofoam. Shake the box lightly before sealing it to check if it requires more cushioning.
3. Seal the box with packaging tape and print, and place your labels correctly. Putting a visible “This side up” tag on the box is crucial in this case.

Shipping Prints

It might seem more accessible than shipping a sculpture, but prints don’t come with frames or any other protective material so they can get damaged during shipping. In all honesty, transparent foil can do the trick just fine, but if you don’t want to risk it (especially if art is what you sell for a living), we suggest quality, dark, and waterproof plastic wrap that will protect the canvas from unwanted scratches, as well as sun and water exposure. Make sure that the wrap is at least 3.5 mm thick for maximum protection.

Shipping Framed Artwork

This time, you’ll need to protect the frame, the glass, and the canvas, so pay special attention to the packaging.
Glassine paper of archival grade is a fantastic solution for protecting paintings from moisture and dust. First, use it to cover both corners and sides of your artwork, and then seal it with painter’s tape. Next, strategically tape a star pattern, i.e., make a cross/plus sign across the middle and then tape an X diagonally. Finally, seal the frame in a bubble wrap envelope if the glass breaks. This will prevent pieces from falling all over the place.

For more details, check our article on shipping delicate and fragile items.

Get Insurance for your Art

We’re always doing our best to provide premium service, as do our carriers, but sometimes packages get lost or stolen despite our best efforts. For that purpose, we recommend that you get PackageHopper Protect. It costs $2.99 per $100 of merchandise value, with a maximum value of $500.

Ship with PackageHopper

We know that Customs Forms seem scary and are probably the most tiring part of shipping, and that’s PackageHopper takes care of it for you.

All you have to do is go to our website and enter your current location, desired destination country, and your package’s weight and dimensions. Pick the service best suited for your needs and wallet, print out the shipping label, and drop off your package at the nearest drop-off point, and you’ll be done. 

How are you going to be using PackageHopper? Let us know on our Facebook, Instagram, or Twitter!