A bright, colourful office filled with art and plants can make people 15 to 30 per cent more productive, especially when they have a say in where everything goes, research has found.
That’s something that’s now becoming increasingly accepted throughout Australia, with many companies commissioning artists to create special pieces for offices, commercial lobbies and corridors, as well as for shopping centres and even industrial estates.
“Companies are even more interested in this now, especially with needing to get people back to work and realising they have to create comfortable and creative spaces to bring them back,” said Emilya Colliver, founding director of leading art consultancies, Art Pharmacy and Sugar Glider Digital. “Art is also a tool that can reflect their brand.
“I do judge people by what they have on their walls and, similarly, companies can present themselves through the art they choose; it can be a form of marketing. It can also facilitate community. We did some work with Deloitte and had a talent show among their staff and some amazing artworks came out of that.”
Colliver is about to launch a new book that will serve as a guide for companies on how to choose, commission and contract art, from the initial idea to the installation of the final artwork. Titled, The Art Project: A handbook for the public and private sectors, it has a simple subtext: ‘How to manage an art project or build an art collection that your community will engage with and love.’
With more than two decades’ experience in the art world, Colliver has overseen a huge selection of art projects in commercial office premises around the country, including for Deloitte in Sydney and Melbourne, as well as in a variety of shopping malls and industrial sites.
She’s a firm believer in art enhancing life, something confirmed by a number of academic studies, like, for instance, that of the University of Exeter in the UK. Its group Identity Realisation found that workers in an art-filled office worked 15 per cent faster than those in a bare office, and up to 30 per cent faster if they could pick where the art went themselves.
“We talk to corporates about their mission statements and look at the areas that will be suitable for art to write the project brief,” said Colliver, whose job title is chief amazement officer and art empress of lightbulb moments. “We need to find the right artists for the right spaces. We’ll often then present companies with a list of suitable artists and talk about narratives for their sites and budgets.”
The resulting works could comprise an assortment of murals and sculptural pieces as well as regular artworks, including paintings and digital images.
Her Art Pharmacy has worked with a huge array of big firms, like Deloitte, Charter Hall, Dexus, CBRE and Mirvac, as well as smaller companies, developers, governments and local councils, providing art for hospitals and public spaces.
Some may choose Aboriginal art themes, to pay homage to the land on which their buildings stand, some may want their interiors to reflect the landscapes outside or their businesses inside, while others might like works to suit cultural calendars, such as a Mardi Gras-themed sculpture to demonstrate their commitment to LGBTQI rights.
Colliver has also worked in retail centres, such as for AMP Capital at Sydney’s Marrickville Metro Shopping Centre and at Broadway, built by Walker Corporation and bought by the Perron Group and Mirvac, with art installed between the entry escalators and on pillars inside. There, it has to appeal to all demographics who might visit and shop, including children and the elderly.
Industrial sites are now often bringing in art, too, usually outside buildings as part of the landscape in order to make their estates more appealing to both passers-by and their workers. “There it has to be sturdy enough to withstand the weather and environment,” Colliver said.
“It has to last between seven and 10 years, and if it’s installed in an area like Penrith in Western Sydney, temperatures have been known to reach as high as 50 degrees. But art is for everyone and can be very powerful in every setting. With my book, I want to demystify the processes involved in a successful art project, showing that art can be attainable, no matter who is behind the implementation.”