The transition to hybrid working, coupled with an exodus of people leaving London for the countryside following the outbreak of the pandemic, has triggered seismic changes across the commercial and property landscapes, writes Artiq Commercial Director, Tazie Taysom.
As a result, our capital is having to adapt – with offices and public realm spaces at the helm.
Increasingly, businesses are facing new recruitment and retention challenges and are therefore seeking ways to keep staff engaged and attract talent.
For businesses to do so, they need to consider the type of space they’re offering.
Offices are a key part of a worker’s life – a space to meet, share ideas and foster collaboration. There are creative ways to improve those spaces and compete with the home working offer for example, focusing on art collections and experiences
In fact, according to the Leesman Index, people in the UK value art collections more than any other region in the world, but an astounding 70 percent are dissatisfied with the application of the collection in their workplace.
It goes without saying that if incorporated and implemented correctly, art collections can breathe life back into buildings and working spaces, helping to attract talent and improve wellbeing.
An art collection also provides the first visual interaction that a prospective client has with their potential partner and can be crucial in making the right impression. With the City of London full of firms looking to make a global footprint and attract investment, positive first impressions are vital.
At Artiq, we are seeing increasing demand for curated collections in corporate buildings. All indications are that this trend is set to further accelerate. This is a common point of discussion among the board of the Culture Mile Business Partnership, which we sit on, as people increasingly want their spaces to reflect the cultural landscape and to feel inspired by their surroundings.
Similarly, businesses want to use collections to demonstrate the values they hold dear, and increasingly commitments to sustainability and diversity feature prominently in what companies are requesting when engaging with potential clients and making investment decisions.
Larger corporates are particularly focussed on what tools they can use to keep staff engaged and attract talent. Another trend we are seeing is an increasing demand for leasing art collections which are rotated quarterly, or bi-annually.
The additional benefit of leasing a collection is that renting pieces generates a regular income for the artists whose works are chosen. When a collection is locally sourced, there is the added benefit of putting money back into the local cultural economy.
Whilst there’s been an overall shift in corporate clients opting for artwork, we can see key trends emerging in individual industries. For example, we are currently seeing many reputable law firms focusing on representation and diversity within their art. A client of Artiq, Mayer Brown, has an internal women’s association which opted for a collection from mostly female and non-binary artists.
With our financial clients, we are seeing a demand for environmentally conscious artwork and our tech clients are keen on tech-enabled art.
Increasingly, in the business world, we are seeing companies being expected to show strong environmental and social responsibilities and adapt their corporate frameworks. Given the City of London has an abundance of financial and tech-based businesses, art collections that communicate values such as around sustainability can help evoke important conversations.
This is a time of change. Change for the City of London, its people, and attitudes towards art.
As attitudes to art continue to evolve, there has never been a better time to support the creative industry in a sustainable and impactful way, for the benefit provided to the people across London.
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