I bought a beautiful digital print by J.T. Kirkland a while back. It came wrapped to the nines in wax paper inside two cardboard sheets very nicely taped to prevent against slippage. Then it was placed inside a fedex box for added security and shipped, I believe, by priority mail. The packaging was such an over-the-top statement about care and protection of something well-loved I was touched. This is an artist that respects his art and respects his collectors. (You may remember Kirland as the artist/blogger I’ve written about before. See my interview with him in hot topics at the left.)
Well when I wrote Kirkland to thank him and commented on the great packaging of my lovely print he told me this horror story about a photo he bought — from a museum — that was wrecked in shipping because it was packaged without care and without respect and without thought and, actually, really stupidly.
If you read Kirkland’s blog, thinking about art, maybe you read the story. If not, here’s the three links describing the arrival of the print, the museum’s dealing with him and the rest of the story which includes a mini-horror story about dealing with the shipper, DHL, but which ends, ultimately on a happy note.
Another happy note: Kirkland mentions in a recent post that he’s got a piece included in a show at Robert Miller Gallery in October. This is the gallery that shows the awesome Patricia Piccinini, and her work will be up at the same time!
