Why Art Is Good For Your Brain

And why surrounding yourself with it might be the best thing you do this year.

There is a reason you feel different when you walk into a room filled with art, you hear your favourite song or feel inspired by a great film. Sometimes you can’t explain why, but it turns out science has a lot to say about that.

Your Brain on Art

When you engage with art, the brain shifts between perception, memory, emotion, and interpretation as it attempts to make sense of what it sees. Neuroscientists have discovered that looking at art activates multiple regions of the brain simultaneously: the visual cortex processes what you see, the emotional centres respond to what you feel, and the prefrontal cortex works to make meaning of it all.

But perhaps most remarkable is what happens over time. Engaging regularly with art has been shown to stimulate neuroplasticity, with your brain forming new neural connections. 

Making Art Changes You

When someone picks up a brush, a pencil, or a palette knife and begins to make something, the brain enters a state that researchers compare to meditation. Stress hormones drop and the nervous system can settle.Artists sometimes describe this as flow – a state of complete absorption where time disappears and the work takes over. Regular creative practice has been linked to reduced anxiety and depression, improved memory and cognitive function, greater emotional resilience, and a stronger sense of identity and purpose. 

You don’t have to be an artist to benefit from the feel-good or restorative benefits of art. Simply being in the presence of great art can also activate the brain’s reward system and provide similar effects as with making art. 

The Story Behind the Work

What makes art even more powerful is what lies beneath it — the story of why it was made and the unique perspective of the artist who made it. Every artist makes choices in their work that are reflective of their own experiences, interests and desires. These choices are sometimes unexplainable, but often not random. As you work to understand that story, a viewer will realize that they are looking into a life, and ultimately into humanity, rather than just the work of art itself.

Discover More

The above is exactly what For the Love of Art, our new live interview series, sets out to explore. As we look forward to Art Vancouver 2027, we will be going behind the canvas and into the studios of some of Vancouver’s most compelling artists, asking the questions that connect us to the human beings behind the work.

Art is good for the brain and for the soul -- and it is one of the most powerful reminders that we have of what it means to be fully, beautifully human.