Art branding - combine art with business!
What comes to your mind when you read about the marriage of business and art? Big exhibitions sponsored by influential companies, rich art dealers residing in salons full of works of art? However, did you know that your company can also use art in building its image? It is art branding - building a brand with the help of artists. It takes various forms and we will try to present them to you, also providing examples of interesting effects of cooperation between business representatives and artists.
Art branding - what is it?
Art branding is all activities that are related to promoting the company's brand through broadly understood art. The fields of art that can be associated with promotional and image-building activities are very different - it can be painting and plastic arts, street art, photography, film, architecture, design, fashion, music, etc. This kind of marriage of artists and business people brings mutual benefits. The model of mutual cooperation between representatives of these two fields has been known to mankind for a very long time. It is worth mentioning all kinds of patronage here. By subsidizing talented artists, the patron was building his image as an expert, connoisseur of art, which was and is well perceived in many circles. Time passed, the model of patronage changed a bit, just like art - but the most general outline of mutual cooperation between artists and business people remained.
Most often, art branding is associated with elite companies that offer an exclusive product and at the same time are rich and influential. This belief cannot be denied in any way, but at the same time it must not be thought that art branding is the domain of only big companies. Smaller brands can also promote themselves through art, but the concept and the chosen form of promotion will be very important in this regard.
How to use art branding?
We have mentioned that the forms of art branding can be very different and go far beyond classic patronage. Let's start with advertising campaigns using elements created by the selected artist. Brands can hire a well-known, award-winning director, graphic artist (painter) or photographer. Two examples: "Polish Legends" directed by Tomasz Bagiński in the Allegro campaign and photographs by Szymon Kobusiński in Nikon commercials. Another form of art branding, especially often involving fashion designers or designers, is the creation of entire product collections. Very often, clothing companies promote collections created by outstanding designers especially for them. The series of everyday objects, furniture, etc., designed by well-known designers, which, for example, companies selling decorative articles, are proud of, are also not uncommon. Sometimes you can also see examples of initiatives that we can call one-offs - for example, it can be a company pavilion designed by a talented architect for a specific trade fair. It is also a marriage of (functional) art and business.
Now we will look at the forms based on patronage. These are activities that have a typical image-oriented attitude. Efficiently conducted patronage allows you to create the image of a connoisseur-company, socially active, supporting art. While the three forms of using art in marketing presented earlier did not necessarily require great funds or prestige from the company, art branding based on patronage did. First of all, because it includes costly undertakings related to a specific social sphere, with a certain high material status. These activities include all kinds of scholarships and development programs for young, talented artists, supporting a certain group of artists or art schools, sponsoring cultural and artistic projects. Powerful companies, most often banks, also have their own permanent exhibitions - an example is the Deutsche KunstHalle, which is the exhibition space for the Deutsche Bank collection.
Art branding - examples
Art branding is present in the business world all the time. Manifestations of the use of art for the purpose of building a brand image can be seen very often. We mentioned the example of Tomasz Bagiński directing films from the "Polish Legends" series for Allegro, we also wrote about Szymon Kobusiński, an extraordinary photograph whose photos were used in his campaigns by Nikon and Leica. Examples of sponsorship include Tauron supporting the Wrocław Opera or Deutsche Bank - the Warsaw Zachęta.
Does art help build a brand image, or is it more the person of the creator? It often goes hand in hand, although it is different with the recognition of some artists outside a specific environment. Let's be honest - few statistical Kowalskis would be able to name five contemporary Polish painters. Also, unless he is an artist associated with the popular industry, such as film and quite recognizable in society, his work will say more for him. However, a lot depends on the target group of your company - you can choose a creator recognizable and recognized in the environment represented by your target. A good example of this is the aforementioned Szymon Kobusiński - although he is not a widely recognized photographer, he is not an anonymous person in the community of photographers and photographers. His work was used by Nikon, which directs its products to this environment. These are comments aimed at convincing that art branding is also a proposition for smaller companies, not necessarily tycoons in their industries with a large budget.
What is personal art branding?
These are activities that use certain areas of art - primarily film and photography - to build a personal brand. This trend is not new, but very important, especially in the era of social media expansion. A good portrait can sometimes tell more about a person than a CV. Even more can be conveyed by a short film-self-presentation. This type of action was taken primarily from the field of political marketing, but it often turns out to be a very accurate decision - after all, each of us knows the saying that when they see you, this is how they write you.
Art branding - benefits
First of all, thanks to the cooperation of your business with artists, it will gain your image as a brand that values quality, aesthetics and valuable solutions, but on the other hand, not afraid of challenges, discovering, bold, breaking conventions, innovative. Cooperation with artists during advertising campaigns can improve the results of your ads and their better recognition. If you target your brand to art groups (as in the case of Nikon), the appearance of a well-known artist in your campaign will bring you many benefits.
