Study reports that art is beneficial in the workplace

December 8, 2003, New York, NY – The notion that art in the workplace is not essential or “merely decorative” has been dispelled by a recent survey of more than 800 employees working for 32 companies throughout the United States that have workplace art collections. The survey, a collaboration of the Business Committee for the Arts, Inc. (BCA) – www.bcainc.org – and the International Association for Professional Art Advisors (IAPAA) – www.iapaa.org, was distributed in late summer and early fall of this year to randomly selected companies ranging from food distributors to law firms that have workplace collections. Employees were asked to respond to each question by indicating their response on a graduated scale that ranged from strongly agree to strongly disagree.

Responses revealed that art in the workplace helps businesses address some key challenges, such as:

• Reducing stress (78% agree, 8% disagree and 14% neither agree nor disagree).

• Increasing creativity and productivity (64% agree, 11% disagree, and 25% neither agree nor disagree).

• Enhancing morale (67% agree, 13% disagree, and 20% neither agree nor disagree).

• Broadening employee appreciation of diversity and encouraging discussions, and expression of opinions (77% agree, 11% disagree, and 12% neither agree nor disagree).

"The workplace art collection is often an underutilized, sometimes overlooked, business asset," said Judith A. Jedlicka, President, BCA. "The results of this survey point to the fact that art in the work environment fosters creativity, boosts employee morale and sparks dialogues - all of which are essential to a company's success."

This survey also revealed that art in the workplace:

• Enhances the work environment (94% agree, 3% disagree, and 3% neither agree nor disagree).

• Evidences the company’s interest in improving the quality of life in and out of the workplace (84% agree, 6% disagree, and 10% neither agree nor disagree).

• Helps to build customer (65% yes and 34% no) and community relations (73% yes and 27% no).

• Leads to networking opportunities (52% yes and 47% no)

"IAPAA members have always found that employees have strong responses to the works of art in their environments. Art reflects the corporate culture in a way that can be both unique and stimulating," said Sandra Land, President, IAPAA.).

While the vast majority (81%) of the respondents indicated that they did not consider art among the deciding factors in working for the company, they overwhelmingly (82%) indicated that art is important in the work environment, and they (73%) reported that their view of the company would change if the art were removed.