Unlocking The Potential of Consolidated Transport

What is consolidated transport and what does the process involve?

Consolidated transport refers to the combined transport of multiple artworks or objects. The vehicle is loaded at the starting address and may load or unload at various points en route to the final destination.

By organising multiple consolidated transports, we can better fill our vehicles and transport more volume over fewer kilometres. This means we serve multiple customers across different addresses, often via our secure art warehouse. It still only involves the same type of cargo—art, sculptures, and other cultural objects requiring careful handling and climate control.

What made you choose the consolidated transport option with HIZKIA for attending CHART?

I think it is a good idea when possible to choose consolidated transport to save both money and resources. When an art fair has an official transportation partner such as CHART and HIZKIA, it usually makes it easier for exhibitors.

When booking transportation for art fairs and general deliveries, which services are most important to you?

It depends on different circumstances. As a gallery you are always trying to get the best shipping quote. Sometimes you need speed, as an artist may be working last minute for an exhibition. Other times you have the possibility to make smarter choices and plan ahead.

What do you consider the biggest challenge in making transportation more sustainable within the art sector?

In general I think that the volume of art being shipped around must be reduced. There are too many art fairs, too many people flying around the world, too often. It needs to slow down for sure.

Having fast, safe and cheap transportation on behalf of a client, collector or museum is often crucial. Sustainability is not frequently discussed, and the gallery may therefore find themselves choosing a less sustainable solution.

It should be a selling point to offer good eco-friendly alternatives. It is like when you are shopping for food or other things. I think many would choose a green alternative if given the choice. It is the same with packaging materials. If there were alternatives available, I think they would be in demand.

Have you made any changes or adjustments to your programme to incorporate more environmentally responsible processes?

I have changed a lot of things. Maybe not only for environmental reasons, but it is a part of it. I attended a lot of art fairs from 2000-2018 but decided to only participate in two local fairs the past few years. The last seven years I have tried to work more locally and depend on good international collaborations instead of being personally present at fairs, exhibitions and events. We have stopped doing international art fairs. When we travel we choose the train if possible.

For the fair in my hometown Stockholm, we can arrange the shipping ourselves. For CHART in Copenhagen we usually select the shipper a couple of months before the fair. Depending on what artists we show there could also be other shipments from the studio or to the framer etc. But the works we show at the fairs are often brand new and finished just in time for the show.

In your opinion, how have transportation practices evolved since you started working in the art sector?

I don’t think that they have changed much. But hopefully there are things that have been improved by the shippers, in terms of sustainability, that I’m not aware of.

How do you view the future of slower, more sustainable logistics in the art world?

I think it is a great challenge for the art world and for the world as a whole to slow down and take more responsibility for our actions. It requires a shift in mindset; rather than being backward-looking and defensive, this change is essential and fundamental.