Strange Boardfellows: How I Began Using Art in the Workplace to Promote Random Acts of Kindness

My take on a classic Scooby Doo villain--the "Space Kook"

The first thing we need to get out of the way is that this isn't a post about artistic talent. The images I'm sharing here are probably not representative of my drawings on the whole--as they're among my favorites and therefore probably skewed towards the upper end of my skills. But that's all beside the point, I think--as this story is more about doing the things you enjoy while encouraging others to do the same.

Many of us spend a lot of our waking lives at work. In my case, most of that time has been spent in an office environment--a veritable cubicle farm. One day, in the midst of a lengthy conference call, I felt compelled to doodle in the corner of my board. It started out as a lone structure--a two-story haunted house with crooked gables and slanted shutters. Over the course of the day, as people visited my cube for various reasons, I entertained them by making additions to the scene until my whiteboard was filled by it.

To my surprise, people liked the picture--a Halloween night vignette with rolling hills, skeletal trees, and a cemetery--and I began to receive requests to make other drawings. In some cases, these requests came from teammates. But in others, I had people reach out to me who I knew very little--including people from different departments who had somehow learned about my hobby through water cooler conversation.

My take on the "ID Monster" from the sci-fi classic Forbidden Planet

In no time, I was managing an evolving list. People began to erase their boards at regular seasonal intervals as an open invitation to be added to the queue. At first, the subjects were all chosen at random and based on whatever inspired me at the moment I undertook the project. Rarely, I'd take on specific commissions--which ranged from Marvel Comics heroes to comic strip and animation characters to famous actors. But I also found that, over time, I was able to base images on what I knew about the people whose boards I was decorating. What had started out as a moment of nonconformity--a mild rebellion against cubicle life--had turned into a way to connect with the other people working around me.

Soon, I was prioritizing my list based on who I thought needed a picture the most. Don't get me wrong--these were only ever small gestures, so I don't want to over-blow their impact. But sometimes a timely little something can be the right thing to express camaraderie or sympathy. Moreover, my pictures have generated tons of conversations about my interests--the numerous fandoms that have often driven what I choose to draw--and have, in turn, exposed me to my co-workers' interests and fandoms.

Ironically, while this has therefore been a very social activity, I almost always draw in seclusion. I don't take time out of the work day--both because of the potential impact on productivity and because I wouldn't want to be under foot in someone's work space. And, honestly, I just like to surprise people--though my work schedule does typically prevent me from being present when the finished product is discovered.

Ultimately, we all have agency in who we choose to be regardless of the setting. Whether we elect to base our identities on our jobs--inside or outside of the office--is a choice, be it conscious or unconscious. For my part, I choose to spend a few hours a month as a guerilla artist spreading cheer one mural at a time. The fruits of my labor are always fleeting, crowded out in time by meeting notices, pareto charts, and other business ephemera--fitting, as it ideally represents the tension between our work lives and our personal lives.

Interested in seeing more of my artwork? I've set up a dedicated Instagram account to support this blog which you can find here: Owl Cowl and Blaster on Instagram. I hope you'll find that I'm improving over time. If there are any subjects you'd like to see me try again--or others you think I should tackle--please let me know in the comment section below.