ARTS AND BUSINESS SHIMUA
The role of arts within an organisation can be interpreted as a catalyst, a lever, and a trigger
to support and drive organisational changes, to increase the competencies of an
organisation and to develop its potential and latent energy. As a consequence, artists and
businesses are discovering the benefits of developing partnerships. Artists are increasingly
recognising and utilising the transformational power of the arts and artistic processes.
Consequently, they are learning to reflect on their own artistic processes, outputs and
outcomes, to sell them to businesses in order to address organisational change
management issues, to support the development of new creative and innovative capabilities,
and more generally to enable personal and organisational development.
Arts-Based Initiative— ABI
An ABI can be defined as any organisational and management intervention using one or
more art forms to enable people to undergo an art experience within an organisational
context, as well as to embed the arts as a business asset. It is primarily and fundamentally
an experience-based process involving and engaging people both rationally and emotionally
through either active or passive participation.
The participation is active in nature when it takes place through people’s direct hands-on
involvement in an arts experience. In this case, people are actors of the construction of
tangible or intangible works of art. On the other hand, the experience is passive when
people just witness or ‘consume’ a work of art. In this case, peoples’ involvement takes the
form of observation, contemplation, appreciation and/or understanding, though they do not
take part in the production of the artwork.
The focus of an ABI is the arts experience. An ABI is intended to use works of art and arts as
media to trigger, catalyse, drive, harness and govern the emotional and energetic
dimensions of an organisation which can have an impact on people and/or on the
organisational infrastructure of tangible and intangible assets.
An ABI is proposed within an organisation with the aim to create the space and time to
undergo an arts experience which encourages the evocation, expression and reaction of
emotions and energy, with an impact upon individuals, groups and the organisation itself.
Personal and collective benefits
ABIs are primarily rewarding at a personal level. These benefits can consequently diffuse
from the individual person to the organisation’s internal and external components ABIs are
unconventional and are capable of engaging people both emotionally and intellectually. They
have the power to put people in a different context, forcing them to give away their comfort
zone and to explore new perspectives and ways of seeing the reality around and within
them. They are thought-provoking and capable of engaging people into reflection, self-
assessment and development of a new and different knowledge of the organisational issues.
An ABI can be a social experience, which involves a group of people to build and share
emotions and energy states which are the result of the interactions between individuals.
ABIs can also have a direct impact on the organisational infrastructure by changing the
tangible and intangible organisational environment by means, for instance, of the use of
colours, music broadcasting, forms and design of the workplaces as well as of the furniture
and facilities.
Forms of ABIs
• An intervention is the kind of ABI performed within a limited time frame, usually
between 2-3 days, and it works towards a specific operative goal. This kind of
initiative tends to take the form and function of arts-based workshops or courses.
However, it can be recognised in other forms, for example through attendance at art
performances or through the purchase of a work of art.
The role of arts within an organisation can be interpreted as a catalyst, a lever, and a trigger
to support and drive organisational changes, to increase the competencies of an
organisation and to develop its potential and latent energy. As a consequence, artists and
businesses are discovering the benefits of developing partnerships. Artists are increasingly
recognising and utilising the transformational power of the arts and artistic processes.
Consequently, they are learning to reflect on their own artistic processes, outputs and
outcomes, to sell them to businesses in order to address organisational change
management issues, to support the development of new creative and innovative capabilities,
and more generally to enable personal and organisational development.
Arts-Based Initiative— ABI
An ABI can be defined as any organisational and management intervention using one or
more art forms to enable people to undergo an art experience within an organisational
context, as well as to embed the arts as a business asset. It is primarily and fundamentally
an experience-based process involving and engaging people both rationally and emotionally
through either active or passive participation.
The participation is active in nature when it takes place through people’s direct hands-on
involvement in an arts experience. In this case, people are actors of the construction of
tangible or intangible works of art. On the other hand, the experience is passive when
people just witness or ‘consume’ a work of art. In this case, peoples’ involvement takes the
form of observation, contemplation, appreciation and/or understanding, though they do not
take part in the production of the artwork.
The focus of an ABI is the arts experience. An ABI is intended to use works of art and arts as
media to trigger, catalyse, drive, harness and govern the emotional and energetic
dimensions of an organisation which can have an impact on people and/or on the
organisational infrastructure of tangible and intangible assets.
An ABI is proposed within an organisation with the aim to create the space and time to
undergo an arts experience which encourages the evocation, expression and reaction of
emotions and energy, with an impact upon individuals, groups and the organisation itself.
Personal and collective benefits
ABIs are primarily rewarding at a personal level. These benefits can consequently diffuse
from the individual person to the organisation’s internal and external components ABIs are
unconventional and are capable of engaging people both emotionally and intellectually. They
have the power to put people in a different context, forcing them to give away their comfort
zone and to explore new perspectives and ways of seeing the reality around and within
them. They are thought-provoking and capable of engaging people into reflection, self-
assessment and development of a new and different knowledge of the organisational issues.
An ABI can be a social experience, which involves a group of people to build and share
emotions and energy states which are the result of the interactions between individuals.
ABIs can also have a direct impact on the organisational infrastructure by changing the
tangible and intangible organisational environment by means, for instance, of the use of
colours, music broadcasting, forms and design of the workplaces as well as of the furniture
and facilities.
Forms of ABIs
• An intervention is the kind of ABI performed within a limited time frame, usually
between 2-3 days, and it works towards a specific operative goal. This kind of
initiative tends to take the form and function of arts-based workshops or courses.
However, it can be recognised in other forms, for example through attendance at art
performances or through the purchase of a work of art.
