Page 6 of 365 /  by Valmira Haxha

I often pause at some of the art installations at work to reflect on their meaning, the creativity of their makers, how they make me feel and the powerful ways they declare our values and enhance our community. Art can move our emotions, reduce stress, energize creativity, stimulate critical thinking and provide space for personal reflection and shared conversation. Art in the workplace brings all those benefits to an organization.

I believe well-curated, excellent artwork can elevate an individual’s well-being, strengthen the organization's culture and enhance the quality of the larger community. Visual arts enrich any environment as expressions of human creativity, culture, passion and aspiration. They invite viewers to contemplate their beauty, consider their meaning and, often, act on their inspiration. They impact viewers with an immediacy and power that transcend words—consider how much modern communication relies on images rather than sentences and paragraphs. Images often display the organization’s history, identity and values.

Art and images provide opportunities for personal reflection, renewal and growth; cultivate group identity and unity; and unleash creativity, innovation and problem-solving that benefit the larger society. This can apply to art displays in the workplace—corporations, small businesses, not-for-profits, public agencies and others, as well as universities.