professional offices -- seedbeds of change

Being a mature citizen entails visits to offices, legal, medical, and various civic usually with a period of quiet time sitting in a room as part of the routine. Along with magazines they all have art, mostly as inane as the sit-com on a loop in the corner. The art was delivered in corrugated cartons leaved with foam, having been packed at the end of an assembly-line somewhere. Inside the frame are swatches of color, suggestions of landscape, maybe a few steaks of gold, almost totally like thousands of others shipped that week. 

No need for concern, this is totally adequate because at this time no one expects any more than that. Art in a waiting room is the decorating decision that comes after choosing the carpet and what kind of chairs? It’s not amazing that no one seems to notice, no one cares. It is possible to spend more and get a little nicer, sometimes featuring reproductions as familiar as the magazines, and almost on the verge of expressing something -- sailing ships at the dentist, stiff formal portraits and thoroughbreds in those 19th century-like law offices. You would think with big personal incomes they might invest in real art and maybe they do for their homes, but that’s private business in a private space, and this is about their offices, those interfaces with the public, those intersections of a diverse public’s concerns and interests, all of them with a bit of time to kill before their business gets done. Isn’t this a fertile ground for art?

So here’s what happens. Someone in charge of the office budget for maintenance and occasional upgrade sees a surplus, and suggests to the boss they buy a piece of art from some local artist, might be someone they happen to know. Well why not, and they hang it in the waiting room, behind the receptionist, somewhere everyone sees it. Chances are people will think it’s strange at first. Original art has a quirky fresh sort of feel about it that people tend to notice, however a word of caution -- it runs the out-of-the-box stuff off the wall. Instead of mutely decorating, the real thing wants attention, draws the eye, has something to say. Not everyone will like it at first, but it’s too late. 

Somebody’s going to say I drove by that guy’s studio the other day, he has a sign, and someone else chimes in, maybe later in the week, that they saw his work in a gallery, in a restaurant, in the home of a friend. Then some colleague, some associate, some competitor from across town will notice the response and buy a piece of art, maybe from some other artist in the area, and hang it in their office -- same thing again. Before long a native species has made a comeback, and area produced art will begin sprouting in offices all over town. For those unfortunate enough to visit several of these offices a week, the effect will be to make those wildlife and floral prints look lazy, the vague abstracts seem mechanical, and on the chance of finding themselves with actual art, to make their interminable waits more palatable and interesting. The eventual effect on the entire community will be the reseeding of a native interest in art and art ownership, everyone just a bit more considerate and thoughtful, more relaxed and satisfied.