Art can be much more than priceless works hanging on hallowed walls -- it can also shape the way people experience cities.
Artsy, a resource for learning about and collecting art, and UBS, the Swiss global financial services company, partnered to produce a multimedia project called the Year in Art, which lists the 15 most influential cities for contemporary art in 2015.
The project incorporates statistics from the Planet Art app, quantifying the number of mentions of major cities in art news throughout the year, as well as data from Artsy on the number of both art installations -- at galleries, museums and cultural institutions -- and finally a curation by Artsy's editorial staff.
The results have some obvious all-time favorites, but also a few standouts beyond the major metropolises. Detroit, for instance, rounded out the list: "Detroit has been lauded as America’s Berlin for the past several years," said Alex Forbes, deputy editor at Artsy. "And the Motor City continues to attract alternative spaces looking to jump the coasts’ hustle."
Here's a look at some of the top cities in the list:
1. New York City
"It’s hard to find an art-related stat in which New York City fails to come out on top," Forbes said. "The city is home to more galleries than any other. It has more major art institutions than any other. And its marketplace is bigger than any other."
2. London
Forbes says that London's contemporary art scene has seen growth in the past decade, as the city has had success attracting the world's elite.
The Frieze Art Fair, held annually in October, is where to see the city's art scene comes alive.
3. Miami + Miami Beach
Now in its 14th year, Art Basel has a reputation as a tropical, warm weather party (it's in December) as much as an art show, but the event's art credentials are significant -- as are Miami's.
"The city serves as the art market’s gateway to Latin and South America," said Forbes.
4. Venice
Venice's Biennale has a long history: The exhibition has been an international showcase for 56 years, and the exhibition actually began 120 years ago, in 1895.
"The biennale has been a touchstone for artistic progress," Forbes said, "and this year was no different."
5. Paris
Paris' big art moment comes each October, with the established Foire Internationale d'Art Contemporain (FIAC to save some syllables), as well as what the more recent Paris Internationale.
And, of course, it's Paris. A city almost as synonymous with art as it is with love and light.
6. Berlin
Forbes calls Berlin the "conceptual soul of contemporary art."
Events in April and September put focus on the city's offerings, but those who want to be in the know in the art world can turn to the city year round, he said.
7. Los Angeles
"L.A.’s recent mass-influx of artists has perhaps drawn the most fervent art-world attention in recent years," Forbes said.
The opening of The Broad, a $140-million home for the art collection of Eli and Edythe Broad, brought even more excitement to the city.
Artsy has more on the cities that made an impact on the contemporary art world this year in Year in Art.