Art Is Not just a Luxury — It’s the Alchemy We Need
Inspired by the TED Talk: “Your Art Is Activism” by Bayeté Ross Smith
We’ve been sold a lie — that making art in dark times is frivolous, selfish, or insignificant. But lately, I’ve been reminded how false that is.
I recently watched a powerful TED Talk titled Your Art Is Activism by Bayeté Ross Smith, and it stirred something in me: a deep remembering that what we create, especially in times of uncertainty or fear, isn’t just expression — it’s resistance. It’s healing. It’s alchemical.
As artists, we are translators of energy, emotion, and truth.
We turn grief into gardens.
We turn silence into color.
We turn pain into poetry.
That is not passive — that is power.
We are not here to escape reality through our work.
We’re here to reimagine it.
And the world needs that now more than ever.
So it is your duty—your prime purpose—to create.
Not because the world is perfect, but because it isn’t.
Not because it’s easy, but because it’s necessary.
Creation is how we remember who we are.
It’s how we feel.
How we dream forward.
And we don’t have to think narrowly about what creation means.
Creation does not start and end with a canvas — it starts and ends with you.
With the way you tell your story.
With the way you arrange your altar or your garden, or your home.
With the softness you allow in rooms that have only ever known sharp edges.
With the beauty you dare to bring into spaces that feel forgotten.
If the world is on fire, then artists are the water — and sometimes the spark.
Let this be your reminder:
Keep going.
Keep making.
Keep blooming through the cracks.
Because this is how we grow past this.
This is how we alchemize — together.
In this moving TED Talk, multimedia artist and cultural curator Bayeté Ross Smith explores how art functions as activism — especially in times of uncertainty, fear, and social change. He reminds us that creativity is not a luxury, but a powerful tool for truth-telling, community-building, and healing. Whether you're painting, performing, writing, or simply choosing to live intentionally, your expression matters. This talk is a call to action for all creatives: your art is needed now more than ever.
