Exploring the role of culture

in everyday life

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The very act of being human. Art is how we reach out to (and find) one another and build the communities and cultures in which we thrive. Art in Real Life focuses on how those arts play out in our daily lives, not in the works of artists that fill museum walls, concert halls, stages or bookstores.

The communities and groups in our lives are all busy reinforcing our connections, establishing guidelines and keeping us engaged. In our Culture and Belonging section we explore the ways that music, storytelling, rituals and fashion play powerful – almost irresistible – roles in building connections – and trust.

In our Parent Conversation Guides, we help you encourage children’s awareness and personal agency using the arts in their lives. Not lessons. Just easy talk.

Art in Real Life emerges from the nexus of art and science – rooted in recognition of how biology and psychology drive us to connect with one another. In our In the News section you can find articles about everything from the physical impact of music on pain to the measureable impact of a background image in a photograph on a child’s willingness to be helpful. And how a tan suit on a president sent commentators into a tizzy.