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Hello Happiness

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Paper cut, collage artwork. On a bright yellow textured paper background, around 65 cut-out people are arranged. The people are viewed from above as if by a bird looking down. Each person has a different body shape, hair cut, skin tone. One is seated in a wheelchair. Some wear hats and have bows or ties in their hair. Each person has their arms outstretched, resting on the person next to them's shoulders. This line of people is arranged into a spiral shape, spiralling in to the centre of the image. All the people are wearing yellow tops which means they almost blend in with he background. All except the people towards the centre of the spiral. Around 15 of these people are wearing dark green tops and the two people at the centre wear dark green hats. The shape picked out by these people forms a simple smiling face within the spiral.
Hello Happiness. © Sinem Erkas for Wellcome Collection.

Recently we’ve had an opportunity to survey the world we’ve created and the society we’re all a part of and ask ourselves: is this what makes me happy? And what is happiness anyway? In this series of The Wellcome Collection Podcast, broadcaster and journalist Bidisha and guest presenter Moya Lothian-Mclean explore the meaning of positive emotions. Each month they are joined by guests including artists, activists, neuroscientists, anthropologists, and people with inspiring stories of positivity and transformation, and talk about ways of being happy, rising from hope and joy to tranquillity and resolve, all the way to ecstasy and euphoria.