The world changes. Trends come and go. Technology moves faster than most of us can keep up with. But throughout all of it, one thing has always stuck around and that’s art.

For so many years, humans have made things. We’ve painted on cave walls, carved sculptures and generally found ways to leave little pieces of ourselves behind. A  huge amount of what we know about the people who came before us comes from the things they created.

But do we still value art in the same way?

Look around and it can sometimes feel like the world has become a little… beige. Minimalism has had us in a chokehold for a while now. Clean lines. Neutral colours. Function first. And while there’s nothing inherently wrong with any of that, somewhere along the way it feels like we may have lost some of the details that gave everyday things personality. Architecture is probably one of the easiest places to see it.

People travel halfway around the world to stand inside cathedrals and historic buildings. Their history is fascinating, of course, but often it’s the craftsmanship that really stops you in your tracks.

Art has arguably never been more accessible. We can discover an artist on the other side of the world in seconds. We can stream almost any song whenever we want. We can watch films from our phones, visit virtual galleries and share something we’ve created with thousands of people before we’ve even left the sofa.

That’s pretty amazing. But there’s another side to it. We’re also scrolling. Constantly.

We consume an enormous amount of creativity, but we don’t necessarily spend much time experiencing it. Art has never just been something nice to look at. It asks us to stop for a second and think. It lets us see the world through someone else’s eyes and oftentimes you don’t even need to speak the same language to understand it.

But creating it is just as important as experiencing it.

When someone says the word artist, it’s easy to imagine a person standing in front of a canvas holding a paintbrush. But art is much bigger than that. It’s music, writing, photography, dance, performance and so much more.

Being creative means taking an idea and turning it into something that didn’t exist before. Which means most of us are probably more creative than we give ourselves credit for.

When was the last time you made something simply because you wanted to? Just because making it sounded fun.

That’s also why conversations around children spending less time on creative activities are worth paying attention to. Creativity teaches us how to experiment, problem-solve, be curious and get comfortable with things not working perfectly the first time. You are completely allowed to make something terrible and have a great time doing it.

Maybe that’s why art still matters so much.

It connects us to other people, but it also connects us back to ourselves. It asks us to slow down in a world that is constantly encouraging us to move faster. So next time you’re walking through a city, actually look around. Notice the little detail on an old building, go to a gallery or see a show.  Art belongs in everyday life. It’s one of the things that makes us who we are.

And that’s a big part of why ARTRAGE exists. For more than four decades, ARTRAGE has created spaces for people to make, experience and discover art in all its forms. From giving artists a platform to take risks and try something new, to creating experiences that bring people together, our purpose is to make sure creativity continues to have a place in everyday life. Because a city with more art is a city with more stories, more ideas, more connection and a little less… beige.