Once you’ve started an art collection, it is essential you know how to care for it. While you should refer to our ‘How to Care For Your Art at Home' article, or our 'How to Store Your Artwork,' here are our team's top tips for how to care for your art:
Harriet, our art handler, suggests always washing your hands before handling any prints and ensuring you have plenty of space to lay the artwork down. When dealing with unframed prints, you have to be extremely careful. Unframed prints that have black or dark ink are vulnerable to scuffing and damage, so Harriet suggests wearing gloves. She also says you should wear gloves when handling photographic paper, since fingerprints can easily appear if you are gloveless.
Sarah, our sales coordinator, recently moved house and was worried about her prints. She opted to get her artwork framed, so it would be easier to survive the move. If you’re in a similar position to Sarah, you could add a frame to your next Art Republic order, or learn how to flatpack or roll your prints, depending on what they are. If your artwork is already framed, and you want to move it with added packaging follow these next steps. Gather your materials together: foam frame coverings, bubble wrap, tape, and if necessary, you can use a cardboard box, or pieces of cardboard to create a box for more security. Place your framed artwork on a flat, clean surface and put the foam frame coverings around the perimeter, with special attention to the corners, as they are most vulnerable to damage. Once you’ve used the foam frame coverings, lay a large sheet of bubble wrap underneath the artwork with the bubbles facing the front of the artwork, and wrap as if you were wrapping a birthday present. Use the tape to secure the bubble wrap, making sure the bubble wrap is taunt against the artwork. If you are worried about the protection of your artwork, you can always add an extra layer of bubble wrap or place it all in a box, with extra bubble wrap in any gaps in the box.
What you’ll need to flatpack: Two sheets of cardboard, A4 paper, tape, heavy duty tape for the outside. To flatpack: ensure you have a clean, flat surface and place one piece of cardboard down. Place your artwork in the centre of the cardboard and move to the side of your flat surface to create four corners out of A4 paper by folding. Once the corners are made, put them at each corner of the artwork, then affix the artwork and corners to the cardboard by taping them down. Make sure to only tape down the A4 paper, and not the artwork itself. Once the artwork is secure, place the second sheet of cardboard on top and tape the two cardboard pieces together - carefully binding the edges. After you’ve completed all these steps, check to make sure you cannot bend the cardboard. If you can, place an extra piece of cardboard on top of the flatpack and secure it with tape. Remember to indicate on the cardboard which artwork it is, so after you move you know exactly what’s in your flatpack!
In order to roll your prints, you will need acid free tissue paper, bubble wrap, a tube with lids, and tape. Place your acid free tissue paper on a clean, flat surface and proceed to place the artwork directly in the middle of the tissue paper. Fold a part of the tissue paper over the top and bottom of the print, then roll the print from the bottom to the top, then secure the roll by placing a piece of tape on the tissue paper. Make sure your rolled print can fit within your tube, and that the edges align, since they could have been moved once rolled. Scrunch up the ends of the remaining tissue paper. Place scrunched up scraps or strips of bubble wrap at the bottom of the tube, carefully place your print inside the tube, cover with more bubble wrap, and cover with the lid. You can tape down the lid to the tube if you are concerned it is not fastened.
If you are unsure if you’re doing the right thing, contact us here at Art Republic.
