It’s that time of year again.

No, I’m not talking about a national holiday, although for some Grand Rapids natives, it’s become a holiday anyways. It’s something a bit longer than a day, and it’s some of the greatest art events you will ever see.

It’s ArtPrize.

Starting in 2009, this is an event independently organized and offered to the public from the end of September through the beginning of October. It started as an experiment, to give the world a totally new experience. For 19 days, 3 square miles of downtown Grand Rapids became the stage for any type of art you wanted to express. It gave art enthusiasts a place to speak their opinion on the question of what art is and why it’s important. It’s open to artists from around the world, so the diversity is almost staggering. It’s completely free to find most of the art pieces (certain works are only viewed in places that you have to pay to enter, but the art itself that’s there is free to look at) and are found all throughout downtown Grand Rapids – in museums, art galleries, bars, restaurants, theaters, hotels, parks, lobbies, walls, bridges, in the Grand River (yes, there’s been venues in the river before – they were pretty awesome), and in many buildings around the city. As the ArtPrize website quite eloquently puts it, “It’s unorthodox, highly disruptive, and undeniably intriguing to the art world and the public alike”.

So what makes ArtPrize so unique?

Firstly, it’s open to any artist over the age of 18. You want to try for a chance at one of the two grand prizes, $200,000 each? Go ahead. On average, 170 people enter a venue into the ballot. It’s half decided by public voters (there’s an app for that) and half decided by a jury of art experts. All in all, more than $500,000 is awarded to those who participate.

Second, it’s all independently organized. The entire exhibition is independently organized by venues and artists through the ArtPrize website. Volunteers sign up to help direct the public to wherever they wish to go, and others keep some of the events that go along with ArtPrize going.

Third, the entire city of Grand Rapids chips in to help everyone have fun. Primarily in this idea is the transportation system that goes throughout Grand Rapids and the surrounding communities. For only a small amount of money, people can buy wristbands to wear that earn them a free ride on the Rapid, valid throughout the entire ArtPrize time.

Finally, and probably the most important, it’s a chance to find some of the greatest pieces of artwork and historical significance anywhere. On average 400,000 visitors come to Grand Rapids every year to look into the artwork, which in 2013 stemmed from 47 different represented countries and from all 50 states in the United States. Of those 400,000, over 30,000 were out of state attendees. Illinois, Indiana and Ohio led the Midwest percentage, while Florida, Texas, California, North Carolina and New York yielded top numbers from outside the Midwest region. Also in 2013, businesses in Grand Rapids made $22.1 million in net new economic activity, and 253 new jobs were created for the event.

Altogether, ArtPrize is an amazing destination to check out, even being featured on CNN as one of Michigan’s top must-see destinations for 2014. It’s a great way to see Grand Rapids from an interesting and fun point of view, while also getting the chance to experience why so many people truly enjoy making and showing off their art.

Oh, the things you’ll see!