Art in business interiors brings many benefits to employees and all those who visit the space, associates, and clients. First, works of art have a positive effect on people’s emotional and psychological processes – they have a stimulating and calming effect – they provide inspiration for work, but also a break. Employees who are preoccupied with work sometimes cannot move their thoughts outside the given framework of problem-solving, so the art is there to provide thinking that is creative, unexpected, and inventive. Art improves motivation and creativity and has a positive effect on social interactions, so both intercollegiate relations and business relations on an unconscious level improve effortlessly.
Namely, art creates a specific atmosphere. By carefully choosing works of art, various desired business results are encouraged. If the space is dedicated to creative meetings where there is an extensive exchange of ideas and live brainstorming, works of art whose artistic characteristics are intense, in an unusual form, with contrasts emphasized, would have an encouraging and inspiring effect. Art can provide a new perspective on a problem, situation, or potential solution. Provided that a certain space is used for negotiations, concluding contracts, offers, and finalizing solutions, works of art in it should create an atmosphere of peace, contain elements that visually soothe the observer, to achieve the desired results on both sides in such a calm spirit. In the offices where employees meet for lunch and relaxation, works of art are there to give entertainment and respite. Art in business space, therefore, should follow the function of space and create a favorable atmosphere for business development, leaving both employees and clients satisfied.
In addition to serving people, art also serves the company itself – the success of the business and the company’s reputation. Selected works affect the reputation by creating the identity of the business space and thus the company. A company that chooses contemporary art for the decor of its spaces sends a message about its own modernity, involvement in contemporary cultural trends, and following trends. Buying and exhibiting contemporary art also speaks to the company’s values - supporting the development of the cultural scene by nurturing cultural diversity and recognizing and encouraging young talent. Promoting art as a value is what speaks most explicitly about a company’s identity. By investing in art, the company becomes an active participant in the culture of an environment by directing the flows of the art market, which favorably affects the status of the company in the community in which it operates. Ever since the pioneering art collection of David Rockefeller in the 1950s, corporate art collections have become markers of business success, standards, and company status, as well as the establishment of the company and its reputation.
On the example of Two Rivers, the works that were chosen to ennoble the company’s space in Topolska 22 speak of identity as well as goals. The selection of works by young artists testifies to the company’s orientation towards the future, progress, and development. In addition to talking about the role that the company has in supporting the local art scene, the selection also talks about the values that the company represents. The large wall installation “Top above the canyon” by the young, but already established artist Nina Ivanović, as the central work of art for the meeting room, draws attention to the importance of environmental awareness in business, since the artist dedicated the entire series to endangered natural resources. The work of Selma Selman, a young artist from Bosnia and Herzegovina, talks about the ethnic identity of the Roma artist, and the presence of her work is a contribution to the company’s values - support for work in multiethnic communities, with understanding and acceptance of identity and cultural differences. Cultural diversity as a value is reflected in the selection of the work of Ana Milenković, which shows elements of Far Eastern cultures, and which is exhibited in the office where communication is being done – thus suggesting that regardless of apparent distance we can find a way to understand and agree, which is crucial for communication and marketing services.
When we talk about the functionality of art, there are different but synchronized drawings in the meeting room. Soothing, yet playful with their delicate lines and unobtrusive dimensions, they favorably affect the atmosphere of serenity and calm conversation. The room in which the issues of development and economy are solved is therefore decorated with a drawing of “Hide and seek” by Selena Vicković, which with its warm tones and witty content encourages thinking outside rigid frameworks and draws attention to the fact that there are less obvious, “hidden” solutions to seemingly inspiring situations. The conference hall is decorated with a large painting, acrylic on canvas by Marija Avramović, an artist from Belgrade who lives and works in Paris. Her work “New place to dive in” with a refreshing display of water in the pool, as if inviting new, fresh, and creative suggestions, brainstorming full of innovative ideas.
Two Rivers, by its own example, points to the importance of art in the business space, its multidimensional purpose, as well as the benefits for business, employees, and clients. That is why the company is here to transfer its experience to its clients – it is here to offer to consult for the selection of works for business space, but also private spaces, as well as to help build a coherent art collection.
Two Rivers provides consulting, communication, digital reputation, education, media data analysis, and arts consulting services. Art has multiple roles in building the brand identity, its reputation, education, communication, and visual identity. That is why Two Rivers decided to give art a big role in its work – both through consulting in the field of purchasing and building art collections and through incorporating art into its own identity.
Author: Ana Simona Zelenović, Curator at Novembar gallery
