How do I shrink-wrap prints of my paintings to sell?

Hi!
I am the owner of a small gallery and custom framing shop, so this is an area with which I am very familiar. First, do not attach the artwork with any adhesive. If you do shrinkwrap, the wrap itself and friction will hold the art in place. Almost certainly whoever buys the piece will want to mat and/or frame it differently and if you glue it to the support this makes it difficult to remove from the backing.

Shrinkwrapping is not very difficult, but you can also purchase clear bags in those sizes which are inexpensive and lots easier to deal with…they have an adhesive strip on one end so they can be sealed. You just slip the artwork, a backer (we use rag mat scraps for the smaller sizes), and a printed bio/info into the bag and seal it. Voila! You’re good to go.

If you are sure you would rather shrinkwrap, you can buy a roll of the wrap and a heat gun. Lay out a work surface that is as clean as you can get it…the static electricity of the wrap will attact every speck of dust in the county. Pull out enough wrap to cover the front, the back and about a 6″ overlap all around. If you do not have enough overlap it will leave a gap as the film shrinks.

Lay the artwork and then the backing face down on the center of the wrap. Fold the wrap over in the middle , press out as much air as possible, then fold over the ends (almost like giftwrapping a very thin package). Apply the heat on the back first, then tighten up the front with a bit more heat. You can also use an iron set on the lowest setting, but you have to use a barrier between the iron and the wrap because the iron gets so hot it can melt the wrap (and you’ll have a huge mess) (don’t ask me how I know this!). Also, I don’t think the heat is all that great for the acrylic paint.

All this may be clear as mud..good luck.

Leslie