What is happiness to you?

We live in an overstimulated society, partly due to the recent technological revolution that promotes immediacy, instant gratification, and, as a consequence, a disconnection from ourselves. The very revolution that seeds dissatisfaction to promote excessive consumerism disguised as happiness, and that confuses the rush of dopamine – that momentary pleasure – with true happiness. Amidst a profound dissociation, it is increasingly difficult to find spaces for introspection to connect with the true meaning of life, as it requires much awareness and courage.

The exhibition ¿Para usted qué es la felicidad? (What is happiness to you?) is conceived as a space for reflection on the much-desired mental and emotional state we call happiness, but which is so difficult to attain for many. It arises from the review of La felicidad by Pablo Leyva, a series of six collages created by Beatriz González in 1977, made from newspaper clippings gifted to her by engineer Pablo Leyva, which were then superimposed onto a floral pattern print. In the clippings, a nurse, a teacher, a bricklayer, an engineer, a mechanic, and a magazine vendor express their deepest desires, while indirectly revealing their dissatisfaction with their work. Once completed, the collages were copied and printed onto paper to be used as placemats for the diners at the cafeteria of the Museum of Modern Art in Bogotá, where the artist worked at the time.

Viewing González’s work in light of the current moment not only gives it great relevance but also points to the polarities, to the duality of the world we inhabit, helping us understand that, without suffering or frustration, we cannot know happiness. With the purpose of bringing to the table a multiplicity of responses to the complex and profound question posed by the exhibition’s title, Beatriz González invites artists Bernardo Ortiz, Icaro Zorbar, Juliana Góngora, José Ruiz, Leyla Cárdenas, Nicolás París, and Snyder Moreno Martín to share their own definition of happiness from their subjective perspectives.

¿What is happiness to you? brings together a series of sensitive voices that, for a moment, invite us to pause, to be present, to simply feel moments of happiness in the smallest things in life.

Paula Bossa

Curator

Opening date: November 14, 2023

Closing date: March 7, 2024