Each year in Grand Rapids, Michigan, more than 1,500 artists enter their masterpieces into ArtPrize. This year, the festival lasted from September 23 to October 11. More than 162 venues allowed their buildings to be filled with art. ArtPrize is a way for artists to express their beliefs, customs, ideas, and values. In addition, ArtPrize is a way for all the people who attend to celebrate all of these things as well.

Saturday, October 3rd, a rainy and cold day, I ventured to ArtPrize with my mom. We waited in substantive traffic for what seemed like forever. While waiting, I was watching the people walk downtown through the art that was displayed. Although it was a stormy day, I was amazed at how many people came. This evinces that people enjoy coming to view the art and that it is valued in our culture. Finally, we made it through the traffic and found a parking spot in a parking garage.

The first building we visited was the Amway Grand Hotel. There, I saw many art pieces that were similar, except two that stood out. One of which was Rolling Down, a three-dimensional entry that caught the eye of everyone in the room. It was a tall waterfall that was made entirely out of different types of wood. The artist had samples of the wood used to create his entry there for patrons to touch. Not surprisingly, this spectacular piece ended up winning fifth place in the its category. Another art entry that I vividly remember from this venue was called Seasons. This massive tree was 4 sided; each side represents a different season. I was impressed by the amount of luster that radiated from the tree. It was clear the artist had belabored over this piece for endless hours. This piece was voted third place in the three-dimensional category. Both of these art entries represent what our culture values; our culture values entertainment. Whether it is the artists creating the pieces of art or citizens attending Artprize to view the assortment of art entries.

My mom and I continued to the JW Marriott building. It was in this building that I had the opportunity to see two of the most intriguing and cultural pieces that were entered this year. The first piece was called Hometown Hero. This was a lengthy American flag made out of Acrylic paint on a canvas that was covered with names, dates, doodles, short stories, and dotted with a few large figures of men in their army suits; it was hard to miss. The artist who created this interactive piece of art had intended for the patrons to write about their hero on the flag. This was extremely powerful to see in person. People were waiting in line to receive a pen to recognize their hero. It was a busy exhibit. It proves that in our culture, we honor our heroes. Many other people must have agreed with me that this was a magnificent piece because it was awarded third place in the Time Based category. The other piece that impressed me was also a painting. The artistic representation depicted a mom and son on what looked to be a safari ride. The mom was looking out the window enjoying the lions that were within arms distance of her, while the little boy was playing on his electronic device. This was utterly compelling. The art emulates a common stereotype of this generation. It made me realize, sometimes I should put my phone down and pay attention to what is around me.

After doing a walk-through of these two buildings, we had a late lunch at Panera Bread. We continued to see art on our way to the restaurant and even inside the restaurant. Every direction you look and every corner to walk, there is art. People traveling to ArtPrize will not be disappointed. This event provides everyone with the opportunity to appreciate what our culture and each individual values. There is something for everyone. We fought traffic leaving for awhile and soon headed home.

On the long ride home, I was able to reflect on my experience. I have never been to ArtPrize before because I have never been interested in art. I am not an avid artist and I even dread fulfilling the art graduation credits. Before attending, this event was just a waste of time in my opinion. Now, I realize that looking at art and creating art are completely different. I was surprised that I did enjoy seeing the striking art pieces that were created, even though I do not enjoy creating art myself. Although I have never been to Art Prize, I have been to a few art museums. Usually, these museums do not have intriguing pieces like art prize. This may have contributed to my beliefs that viewing art is boring.  However, ArtPrize was everything except boring.
After attending this cultural event, it made me wonder if any other cities or countries have a cultural event similar to ArtPrize in Grand Rapids. According to Jeffrey Kaczmarczyk, an MLive reporter, there are many other countries who have an event similar to Artprize including Sweden, Germany, England, Russia, France, and Japan. This substantiates that art has an impact on many cultures, not just our own. I am sure that there are many people in these countries who are just like me. I learned that I can not only tolerate, but appreciate the art. Clearly, a plethora of people in Michigan and all over the world feel the same way.