Packing, shipping, installing, and storing works of art.(Artex Fine Art Services)

There are collectors who are so passionate, some might say addicted, to the fine and decorative arts, that they simply cannot stop acquiring objects. This is usually not a problem for those who collect smaller-scale pieces such as snuffboxes, ceramic figures, or ephemera, for in these cases there is almost always room for one more piece. However, if one concentrates on larger objects--paintings, furniture, sculpture, or architectural elements--finding available wall space or house room for another acquisition can mean deaccessioning something equivalent in size or deciding to put something in storage. Many collectors choose storage, and, often, not surprisingly, so do museums and art and antiques galleries around the world.

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Storage naturally involves packing and shipping an artwork to an off-site location. Artex Fine Art Services, headquartered in Landover, Maryland, has aided museums, galleries, auction houses, corporate collections, artists, and private collectors with these practicalities since it was founded in 1990 by John K. Jacobs and Todd Herman. The company has nearly two hundred full-time employees whose specialties range from art restoration and installation to packing, shipping, and storage. The firm has facilities that serve four metropolitan regions: New York, Washington, D. C., Boston, and Fort Lauderdale, Florida.

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More and more, insurance companies are looking at art storage facilities and demanding that museum ...