Happiness with a forced smile: A look at America's newest self indulgent exhibit

Imagine a warehouse with random junk scattered around it and gaggles of couples and groups taking pictures of themselves. Now imagine an oversized nightclub in the heart of Boston City with overly flashy lights and out-of-date music, except you’re completely alone and painfully sober. This is Happy Place. A pop-up ‘sensory’ exhibit on a tour of America, visiting Boston for the next 14 weeks before it hits the road again like a traveling freak show. Happy Place is a winding set of hallways and rooms that feature brightly colored installations full of novelty props, next to which people pose for pictures they share on social media. Dubbing itself ‘the happiest place in America’ as well as ‘the most instagrammable place in America’, its difficult to tell if the self-proclaimed titles are supposed to be intertwined or not.

On a sunny Friday afternoon I thought I’d pop in to see just how a novelty travelling expo had managed to tap into our positive emotional state. With ticket prices starting at about $30 a ticket (See also: Twin-pack of Xanax for $27.99 at CVS), I hoped I’d at least get a worthwhile experience even if I didn’t come out the other side a smiling man. But Happy place didn't provide me with any ounce of dopamine, serotonin, or endorphins. Instead it gave me a glimpse into the self-absorbed, selfie obsessed future. Happy place promises you a ‘multi-sensory experience’, as detailed on their website, with the first sense being that of taste. A mini cup with 4-6 M&M’s in it, with little smiley faces etched on the back.

After that, you’re introduced to the first of many oversized ‘whacky’ objects. A pair of high heels, the letters XOXO made of tiny mirror’s and confetti. So much confetti. But not enough to be interesting. And that’s the thing about Happy Place. It’s ALMOST an interesting place. But the realities are hidden (not very well) all over the place. The warehouse’s old air conditioning vents and rusty beams are kept out of the camera’s view. The waiting lines wrap around cheap restriction barriers like vines around a tree. And the wall’s blemishes and dents are blown out by bright lights. Happy Place feels hollow.

"With the amount of unfortunate events happening recently, I believe that our world as a whole can use more happiness" - Happy place creator, Jarred Paul

Of course Rob Cherelle, general manager of Happy place here in Boston was a strong advocator for how HP can positively affect this generation in regard to recent rising depression levels in younger people. “We're seeing spikes of waves of depression and mental illness and mental health and it’s something that should have been discussed a long time ago and I think happy place is a place where the entire space itself is is facilitated for you to just come and enjoy yourself ”. But I have to disagree with Rob on this one. The thing I can't get past about mixing Instagram with happiness is that nothing on Instagram ever feels authentic. Social media has influenced how we see the world since the early days of the internet. If Facebook makes you think everyone is dull and boring, and Twitter makes you think everyone is vicious and awful, than Instagram makes you think everyone is perfect. And it's never the case.

Happy place is the quintessential example where people want you to believe they’re

having experiences that they’re not really having. Nobody is going to find happiness looking at an oversized Dunkin' donuts cup, even with the extra option of a VIP ticket for $200 (See: Weekly therapist appointments at $60 a visit).

But maybe I’m just a negative cynic that can’t see past the rose-tinted filters on Instagram. Perhaps taking photos and the online validation of others ‘liking’ those photos does bring happiness to people. To get a better idea of how social media affects happiness, I reached out to Rebekka Andersen, a researcher in the ‘Happiness Research Institute’ in Denmark.

"I think it has to do with how you frame it", Rebekka says. "If you are using social media as a validation of happiness than you are putting your happiness in the hands of someone else.

Because what if they don’t like your photo?". If your only exposure to people’s lifestyle and body images is on Instagram, then its very easy to think thats the standard. And to then put yourself under that standard. There's a relentless emphasis on promoting ‘perfect’ lifestyles throughout our Instagram feed. We have to build our lives to look like we’re having an amazing time, whether its true or not. And to me, that sums up both instagram and happy place.

"If your only exposure to people's lifestyle and body images is on instagram, then it's very easy to think thats the standard. And to then put yourself under that standard."

Rebekka points out that not all social media negatively affect our mood however. Because social media doesn't create any behaviour, its an amplifier and with some forms, the feeling of being part of a community can at times be a huge influence of our happiness. "What we consistently f ind is that social connections and being part of a community is immensely important for happiness. That's usually not what's being said about happiness and the pursuit of happiness, but it's a huge factor".

And that's easy to see when you're active on these platforms. If you spend more time being interactive with others over passively scrolling through feeds and looking at other people's life, then there's room for positivity. But that's not happy place. Happy place doesn't feel like a quaint place to go with your friends. It feels like an angry teenager annoyed about not getting enough attention. It feels like someone shouting at you to change your attitude. 'Come over here. Eat these 3 M&M’s. Look at these oversized shoes. Get a picture with this sign. Get a picture with these colours. Tag us, share us. Check out the gift shop. Like, share, subscribe. Give me validation, GIVE ME VALIDATION.'