If you’ve been working remotely since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, there’s a good chance you miss your old office. And maybe your office misses you. Your desk has probably collected a layer of dust, your secret stash of snacks are stale by now and your office plant has surely seen better days.
If you take into account just how many offices have been sitting empty as employees transition to remote work, you’ll realize how much space is being squandered that could be used for something else. Now, Seattle-based art collective House of Sorcery is letting their creativity run rampant in all that empty space.
House of Sorcery launched in September and is led by artists Duffy De Armas and Stefan Hofmann. Over the past few months they have been collaborating with companies in order to turn commercial spaces into interactive artistic experiences.
For example, House of Sorcery recently did a three installation art project for T-Mobile’s headquarters. The art studio created two large renditions of the T-Mobile “T” logo in the company’s signature magenta color. Anyone who visits the T-Mobile headquarters will immediately be greeted with the large “T” as soon as they enter the lobby. But once the viewer gets closer to the artwork, they’ll notice a series of moon-like craters that give the art a sense of depth and texture.
The “T” artworks were carved from wood using computer numerical control technology to create a man-made pattern. House of Sorcery says this is meant to portray the relationship between technology and the natural world, and visually represent T-Mobile’s company culture of exploration.
In addition to the large letters, House of Sorcery also created a 45-foot mural in the hall of the company’s office. This mural incorporates geometric patterns in white, gray and T-Mobile’s magenta color. Some of the shapes in this mural protrude from the wall, adding extra dimension.
“The collaboration with House of Sorcery was fun and incredibly fruitful. The final result is an iconic art installation that showcases the T-Mobile brand while welcoming guests and employees to our new headquarters in an engaging and, frankly, awe-inspiring way,” Jon Gaetz, T-Mobile’s senior director of retail merchandising, said in a statement.
House of Sorcery has also collaborated with Seattle companies Zillow and Expedia. For Zillow, the art group designed a wall filled with carved wooden sculptures. The sculpture wall is located above the coffee counter in Zillow’s office, so the sculptures are supposed to represent different aspects of cafe culture — with mugs, books, backpacks and more. For Expedia, House of Sorcery created custom patterned wallpaper that depict scenes you’d find while traveling through the Pacific Northwest.
Beyond office murals, House of Sorcery has created other forms of artwork for companies. For computer company Dell, House of Sorcery created custom vacuum-sealed packaging meant to show off Dell’s PoweMax data storage products. The end result is a cardboard and plastic container that is reminiscent of the packaging you’d come across when buying a new toy as a kid. House of Sorcery also worked with Dell on an installation that uses lights and mirrors to create the optical illusion of an infinity room.
In addition to bringing creativity into office spaces (which often can feel dull and boring), the art group says it wants to give employees a reason to want to come into the office. After months of adapting to working from home, many employees will need to be persuaded to return to work in-person. What better persuasion than inspiration?
“There is a growing importance of being deliberate in the office space, given that people now have the option to work remotely. If you’re going to come in, that environment not only needs to be safe, the experience needs to be elevated,” House of Sorcery founder Duffy De Armas said in a statement.
