By Becca Sidman, Newport News Public Art Foundation
When we think about health and well-being, we tend to focus on the essentials: nutrition, sleep, exercise and access to care. But there is another element that is more elusive and shapes our lives just as profoundly: the arts.
The arts are not a luxury, and they are not an afterthought. They are, quietly and consistently, a vital part of what makes us human and our lives satisfying.
We often overlook how present they are, and at times, we’re all guilty of this. But the arts are everywhere. A sculpture spotted on a morning walk, a child’s drawing stuck to a fridge or the cadence of a song transporting us back to an exact moment in time are all gentle reminders of the arts. They move us through our days, sometimes subtly, sometimes boldly, but always with the potential to elicit something essential within us.
The influence of the arts on individual well-being is well-documented. For children and teenagers, creative engagement helps build emotional intelligence and resilience. It offers forms of exploration and self-expression that complement traditional academic learning and help students connect with themselves and others on a different level. For older adults, participation in the arts improves cognitive health, lowers rates of depression and fosters more meaningful social connections. Art-making becomes not just a pastime, but a path to vitality.
In clinical settings, too, the arts have found a place. Music and art therapists help patients manage pain, anxiety and trauma. A painting in a hospital hallway or a harpist in a recovery room are not indulgences. They are small interventions that ease the burden of illness and remind patients and caregivers alike that beauty still has a role, even in life’s most challenging moments.
Perhaps the most profound role the arts play is not in the moments of crisis, but in the rhythm of the everyday. The arts help us see more clearly. They encourage observation and interpretation. They foster empathy. And they offer connections among people, generations, community and the place they call home. That connection is visible in cities around the world.
Travelers do not flock to Florence or Kyoto for their traffic systems or zoning codes. They come for the architecture, the sculpture, the atmosphere of creative life embedded in stone and sky. The arts give a place its distinct character. They are what endure.
Here in Newport News, that same principle holds true. Through the work of the Newport News Public Art Foundation, 23 large-scale sculptures now animate our public spaces. They are free and accessible, open to everyone and woven into the fabric of daily life. Some are bold landmarks while others are quieter companions. But each one asks something of us: to pause, reflect and wonder. Each one offers an experience, however brief, that lifts the ordinary into something a little more meaningful.
These sculptures do not solve public health crises. They do not replace mental health services or fill classroom gaps. They do, however, remind us that health is not only about survival. It is also about what makes life worth living.
The arts help us remember who we are and what we care about. They enrich us. They make our cities more distinctive, more livable, more loved. And, in doing so, they contribute quietly and powerfully to our overall well-being. They shape not only how we experience the world, but how we imagine what’s possible within it.
Becca Sidman is executive director of the Newport News Public Art Foundation. She can be reached at 757-369-3014 or by email at info@nnpaf.org. Visit the website at www.nnpaf.org.
