The paintings in your home are personal and treasured, and sometimes fragile and expensive. When it comes to moving them then, this can be a nerve-wracking process. To keep your paintings safe and in prime condition when you move, you’ll need to pack them like the experts.
Not to fear: this can be done with a few materials, in just a few steps. To get started, you’ll need these materials:
- Dust Sheet
- Bubble or Plastic Wrap
- Cardboard Corners
- Painter’s Tape
- (Optional) Artwork Box
When you’ve got your materials, to pack your paintings for moving you should:
- Minimize Contact
- Wrap in Bubble or Plastic Wrap
- Secure with Cardboard Corners
- (Optional) Store in an Artwork Box
- (Optional) Hire a Removals Team
1. Minimize Contact
When you prepare your canvases for the move, you need to ensure that you minimize contact. This means no grubby fingers and trip hazards, and more gloves and a clear, flat space.
Before you lay down your canvas then, clear the space where your art is and put down a dust sheet or blanket with the bubble/plastic wrap on top. With clean gloves on, you can then place the canvas down on top with care.
2. Wrap in Bubble/Plastic Wrap
With the gloves still on, use the bubble or plastic wrap to wrap and protect the canvas.
If you need to secure the wrap, a small amount of painters tape can hold it in place. Remember not to get the tape on the canvas itself as this can damage the art.
Optional: Some people recommend that you also wrap paintings in a layer of brown paper/parchment paper before the bubble/plastic wrap goes on for additional protection. Avoid newspaper though, this can mark and stain your artwork.
3. Secure with Cardboard Corners
If you want extra protection on the corners of the canvas, or if you have a frame you’d like to protect, you can use cardboard corner protectors on top of the wrap.
You can find these in art shops, order these online or make them yourself with a small amount of cardboard – as StateoftheART Gallery shows us in this video:
4. Store in an Artwork Box
If your artwork is antique or expensive, you should consider an artwork box. More often than not, this is for your most expensive antique and fragile art, so this won’t be required for inexpensive modern art – more on that below.
5. When In Doubt: Hire a Removals Team
Don’t pack and move your artwork if you’re not confident. A reliable removals team will wrap, protect and move your paintings with professional materials and expert precision.
How to Pack Fine Art for Moving
Fine art – in particular fine art that has been hung for years – can be brittle and more susceptible to damage. If you need to move fine art, you should do so with additional care.
This picture was taken in Stradey Castle in Llanelli, where we removed and repositioned valuable and fragile fine art for a film production.
You can wrap fine art as you do normal art, but we’d recommend another layer of corrugated cardboard on top of the bubble wrap for extra protection.
You should also source a wooden box or crate designed for fine art; art galleries will often craft a specific sized double layered crate to move canvases, which will be wrapped in plastic wrap and sandwiched between foam to keep them safe.
This video from The Art Gallery Inc. is an insightful look at how high-end fine art is packed into crates before it is shipped or moved.
To find out more about our removals, antique removals and storage services, please contact Nathan today.
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Written by Holly Charman, for Falconer Removals.
