In August, the Clinton Library is focused on art. You may wonder why a public library would dedicate an entire month to art. The reason is simple: encouraging our community members to learn, grow, explore, and live their best, fullest lives is central to our mission. Art, in its many forms, offers people of all ages and all abilities a wealth of opportunity to do all of those things. Let's take a look at some examples.

Creating art is good for the mind.

Did you know that creating art has been linked to improved memory, reasoning, and resilience in adults and helps arrest cognitive decline in aging adults? This was reported by Harvard Health Publishing.

Creating art helps children develop working memory, mental flexibility , self-control and visual-spatial skills, especially in toddlers. These skills help kids analyze what they see and make choices based on visual information.

Creating art is good for mental health.

Creative activities, such as art, can relieve stress, reduce depression and anxiety, and aid communication.

Exercising one's creativity is important for remaining healthy, remaining connected to yourself and feeling connected to the world.

Creating art both helps kids gain perseverance as they completing art projects and gain confidence and communication skills as they learning to express themselves in new ways.

Creating art is fun and important for its own sake.

Studies show that engaging in any form of visual expression results in the reward pathway in the brain being activated. What does this mean? It means that it's perceived as a pleasurable experience and you feel good. (source: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S019745561630171X)

Studies also show that while you are creating art, your brain gets into the zone, meaning creating art activates a relaxed reflective state and focused attention to task. In other words, you lose yourself and live in the moment.

Creating art together is vital for families because it keeps all members engaged, connected and happy.

Creating art is a rewarding and fulfilling source of beauty and expression.

Creating art is good for developing new motor skills.

Holding a paintbrush, drawing and doodling, stringing beads, and cutting with scissors all hone fine motor skills, which lay the foundation young children need to learn essential life skills - like learning to tie shoes, fasten buttons, and use utensils.