The tide is shifting—people are starting to look for more. Open-office concepts. Buying local. Food trucks. Pop-up shops. The days of the cube-farm and space being defined as a place simply to hold people are changing.
One of the things I haven’t been able to escape lately—perhaps I am more in tune with the shift as an artist myself—is the integration of art and environmental branding. From residential to corporate to retail, companies are starting to place a greater importance on art as a way to transform a space. Through murals, installations, and local artist commissions, companies are changing the way we look at successful brands and the spaces they occupy in our environment.
As a designer, you often pick up on the little things. The branded matchbooks, the art on the walls, the way a sign is built or lit. Is the art on the wall custom, or is it the same in every restaurant or hotel in a company’s portfolio? For me these questions have turned into “I think I know that artist” or “is that sign hand-painted?”, and that is an exciting change. While I will always appreciate and fight for the value in branding your materials head-to-toe, when a company begins to consider the more immersive ways to do this, often times they are rewarded with fantastic brand recognition and a shift in public perception. All of a sudden people want to spend more time in your space.
I will often notice these things as I’m going about my daily life—picking up a meal or traveling to a new place. These days, with artists having access to so many tools to expose people to their work, I’ve been seeing it almost daily—and it’s happening all over the place.
![LeDoux_Starbucks LeDoux_Starbucks](https://www.orange-element.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/Starbucks2_earth-1-300x300.png)
On a recent stop into Starbucks, I noticed some familiar art on the wall—and sure enough, once I got back to my desk I discovered a treasure trove of work illustrator Jesse LeDoux has done for the company—from wall art, to murals and installations all over the globe. How cool was it that a guy I once took a screenprinting class from has work in Starbucks stores across the globe? The best part to me is so many people will now be exposed to his work.
With a quirky and imaginative style I would have never paired with the Starbucks brand, I’m sure people will take notice as they are fixing up their Venti Almond Milk 2-Pump Cappuccinos—his work is unmistakably creative. The art Jesse has done is simply awesome, transporting you to a place of imagination and wonder—for Starbucks, he has explored the folklore surrounding the company, process, and more through his unique style.
![LeDoux_Starbucks_Mural LeDoux_Starbucks_Mural](https://www.orange-element.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/1489775604131.jpeg)
Fast forward to a few weeks ago, when I pick up my phone and see Tim Gough, an Illustrator/Art Director/Poster Maker out of Philadelphia created a mural for his local Honeygrow (unfortunately, not in Baltimore). I’ve got a few of Tim’s prints and follow his work, so I was excited to see a large company hiring a local artist to create a mural for one of their stores. So often you see large companies hiring mega-agencies to create environmental graphics to push out to stores nationwide—but when you think about it, who better to interpret your company’s values and aesthetic in a way that speaks to the customers in a specific region, than someone born and raised there? There has become a huge emphasis on local these days, whether it is locally-grown food, locally-produced goods, supporting the local economy—extending this into hiring local artists and designers just makes so much sense. I hope to see it more and more.
![Gough_Honeygrow Gough_Honeygrow](https://www.orange-element.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/20180322-32.jpg)
Take note next time you go on a coffee run, client lunch, or visit a new office. With this growing trend, there’s a good chance you’ll see something you didn’t expect as companies start to place a higher emphasis on art and experience. Inviting spaces that actually make you want to settle in, gather for a meeting, wind down and relax—these are the places that stick in the minds of consumers. I know, because I am one! And I certainly enjoy spending time in places that aren’t trying to shuffle you out the door. Building a lasting impression and brand loyalty goes a very long way.
For your next environmental branding project, consider giving Orange Element a call—whether you are local or on the other side of the country, we can bring together functional and artistic, tactile and digital, to create a space that has your customers coming back again and again.
Images courtesy of Tim Gough and Jesse LeDoux.