I Guess We’re Not ALL Digital – The Benjamin’s Desk Mural

Building a Workspace Mural.

A Blank Canvas – Starting from Scratch

When Philly Startup Leaders wanted to use the Benjamin’s Desk co-working space for their Nest program (recent college grads looking to take their startup companies full time), they approached Grue & Bleen to come up with a concept to make them all feel more at home. Our Designer, Pete DiLorenzo, came up with the idea of turning the white walls of the common area into a vibrant, colorful mural.

The Concept – Create the Idea

Not only would this make the space feel more inspirational and creative, but the process would be collaborative and bring the co-working community closer together.

As the coordinator of the project, Pete designed a simple concept on paper to be translated into a large scale painting.

The Process – Start the Build

The idea was to combine the organic quality of nature with the geometric, sleek feel of technology (much like the Grue & Bleen brand).

Once the basic shapes were drawn on the blank walls, the rest of the volunteer team joined the process to fill in the rest. The idea was for everyone to have a fun time together collaborating on a project where no one would feel insecure if they “weren’t an artist.” Rather than having a strict vision of what the mural should look like, we made it flexible so that everyone wouldn’t be so hung up on doing it right. Our philosophy has always been that there is no right or wrong in a creative project: it builds itself as the process moves forward and you should always anticipate the outcome to be different than how it started.

The Finished Product – Imagination to Implementation

The outcome was a new original mural lining the once-boring office walls and included the flavor of each person who participated. The project was not a paid commission however, the experience of creatively collaborating with people along with a new vibe in the office was enough of a reward for all of us.