Tips and Tools: Packing Sculptures Wanying Liang and Junjun Ding
Appears in the May 2023 issue of Ceramics Monthly.
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Keep delicate ceramic sculptures intact and undamaged during shipment by applying methods for shipping oversized work to a smaller scale.
As an artist working with ceramic materials, one of the most critical aspects of my practice is ensuring that my art pieces are packaged and shipped safely for exhibitions or to customers. This process can be challenging, especially when it comes to ceramic pieces with fragile structures as found in my Woman as Vessel series. In this guide, we discuss the step-by-step process of creating packaging for ceramic work that involves a doubled cardboard box package, a custom wooden scaffold in the inner cardboard box, and hanger straps to secure the ceramic piece on the baseboard.
Inspiration
I encountered the frustrating problem of shipping fragile ceramic pieces, which led to them arriving damaged or broken. To solve this issue, I researched different packaging methods and materials that would be best suited for shipping ceramic art pieces. Safely shipping the delicate ceramic sculptures remained challenging.
One day, while making wooden crates in my home studio to ship larger and heavy ceramic sculptures (Gone with Flowers and Shrine for the Taiwan Ceramics Biennale), I came across the idea of creating a similar wooden scaffold to ship my much smaller ceramic pieces. After testing the technique several times, I found that it was successful in keeping the ceramic pieces safe and secure during transit.
Materials and Tools
Cardboard boxes: Two cardboard boxes of different sizes, one large enough to fit the ceramic piece and the other to fit the inner box with room for bubble wrap around it.
Process
The first step in creating the packaging for ceramic art pieces is to roughly measure the dimensions of the ceramic piece. This measurement will help determine the size of the inner and outer cardboard boxes needed to fit the piece. Here, the piece fits into a 24x14x12-inch cardboard box with enough free space around it for straps. (You can check your local store for readily available sizes of cardboard boxes.)
The wooden scaffold should be designed to fit snugly inside the inner cardboard box. The base should have enough space surrounding the piece to accommodate at least three areas for straps to secure the work in place. Draw a schematic of the scaffold and make a cut list based on the interior dimensions of your selected inner box. Cut the wood pieces to the appropriate length and size (1). For international shipping, it’s required to use engineered wood, so plywood is recommended. Screw the pieces together securely, ensuring that the scaffold is sturdy and able to hold the ceramic piece in place (2). Wood glue is recommended to ensure a strong joint. Assemble the frame of the scaffold first, then attach the baseboard to the frame.
Wrap the ceramic piece where it might touch the scaffold or inner box with foam sheets. Cut a piece of foam board with a utility knife to provide cushion between the base of the work and scaffold baseboard. The foam board should be slightly larger than the base of the ceramic piece (3). Then, glue the foam board to the baseboard of the scaffold and place the ceramic piece onto the foam board (4).
Secure the ceramic piece to the baseboard with hanger straps using wood screws (5). Two screws on each side of the hanger straps are recommended to adjust the tension on the ceramic piece and provide additional security in case one of the screws comes loose in transit. The straps should be tight enough to hold the piece securely in place but not so tight that they could crack the ceramic.
Place the wooden scaffold with the ceramic piece into the inner cardboard box (6). The inner cardboard box can be either single walled or double walled. Since the scaffold holds the piece in place within the box, there is no need to fill in free space with additional packaging materials, which might cause damage to the delicate ceramic. Close the inner cardboard box and tape it securely.
Place the inner cardboard box into the larger outer cardboard box. A double-walled cardboard is recommended in this step for better protection. Fill any gaps between the two boxes with kraft paper or bubble wrap and close the outer cardboard box, taping it securely (see 7). Label the top side of the box (even if the ceramic piece could withstand reasonable impact upside down).
Label the package with the appropriate shipping information and any necessary handling instructions.
Results
Creating my new packaging technique was a fun and rewarding experience. By using scrap materials I already had on hand, I was able to create a packaging system that was effective and visually appealing for my ceramic sculptures with delicate structures. Your experience may vary because of the shapes and dimensions of your ceramic art pieces. This alternative packaging method could be improved or adjusted to suit your pieces.
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