Adding art to our offices boosts productivity and creates a pleasant working environment

Decent work is also about providing a pleasant working environment and infrastructure. By adding art to our offices and meeting rooms, we aim to improve the working environment towards decent work, as can be found in SDG 8 and SDG 9

Art in the office

Our modern HQ offices in Ardooie Belgium include carefully selected artworks that brighten up the offices and meeting rooms. This addition boosts our creativity, productivity and, it is, of course, aesthetically pleasing. Thanks to the art, our workspaces feel more homely.

At the Sioen Ardooie headquarters, our offices are modern, mostly white and without many distractions. However, we have chosen to add colourful art to the workspaces and meeting rooms.

There are many reasons why adding art is a good idea.

A boost by art

According to an article in the Guardian, Dr Craig Knight, who has studied the psychology of working environments at the University of Exeter, says that “if you enrich a space people feel much happier and work better; a very good way of doing this is by using art”. Dr Knight’s team found that people who work in offices that are enriched with art and plants work about 15% quicker than those in lean offices and, in addition, they have less health complaints.

It's not only about productivity, it’s also about feeling at ease in your working environment. When your office or meeting room is aesthetically pleasing, you stimulate creative thinking, foster positive moods, and it can even help create a collective team identity. The employees are less stressed, and they experience fewer mental health problems.

Further, contemporary pieces seem to make for good talking points in waiting rooms or meeting rooms. Even after the first meeting, adding art pays off. Research shows that art can help a company to attract clients and good employees.

Why we love our art

The previously mentioned reasons have been proven by thorough research. The following statements give an insight on how our Sioen people feel about the art:

“It’s nice to have some colour on the walls.”

"I like to escape reality and to dive into the world of an artwork.”

“The art in the meeting rooms often gets a fine first conversation going at the start of a meeting with a new potential partner.”

“It’s always nicer to look at something beautiful than at a blank wall. It immediately brings warmth and ambiance.”

“Some works fascinate me and stimulate my creativity. It just makes me happy too.”

“I always wonder what the story behind a certain piece of art is. This journey to the artist’s mind boosts my creativity.”

“The art in the conference rooms creates a pleasant atmosphere."

"I like works of art in the professional habitat because of its dynamism and playfulness. It creates a more homely atmosphere in the otherwise rather traditional office landscape".

Images say more than words

Have a look at our artwork and find out for yourself which influence it might have on your productivity, creativity, etc.

SDG

Thanks to adding artwork to our offices and meeting rooms, we help realising SDG 8 “Promote sustained, inclusive and sustainable economic growth, full and productive employment and decent work for all”.