"How does art influence us?"
'Art ' is that aesthetic interaction between us and our surrounding ,we create art after all by being influenced by nature and the surrounding on a material and abstract level.
Then art makes us appreciative of beauty ,it demonstrates and accentuates it to our senses.
In many times it is a reproduction of natural phenomenas to educate us as well , if we can't reach nature all over the world , we can still see it represented in works of art.
It interprets also phenomenas on an abstract level, portrays emotions and many times presents the intricacy of our social existence.
Art could be concrete at a level and could be subtle in a delicate way ,that makes it attractive for the viewer.