Want a
glimpse of happiness? Then head to the Chicago Cultural Center’s fourth-floor
galleries to see what Stefan Sagmeister thinks after exploring the topic for
10-years. The graphic designer presents a series of rules to live by,
contextualized by social data the artist gathered from Harvard psychologists Daniel
Gilbert and Steven Pinker, psychologist Jonathan Haidt, anthropologist Donald
Symons and several prominent historians.

But
don’t expect this to be like reading a dry, boring research paper. Instead, expect
giant neon signs powered by a bicycle, sugar cubes that take on a rainbow hue when you smile at them and gumball machines that measure the overall mood of Chicagoans.

The Skinny:

• Fun Fact:
  There’s free gum. And candy. AND giant inflatable monkeys. Enough said.
• The Happy Show
• July 13- Sept. 23
• Chicago Cultural Center
  78 E. Washington St.
  Chicago, IL 60602
• Free

New to the Chicago iteration of the exhibit—a wall of 32,000 folded cigarette papers arranged to read, “Uselessness is gorgeous.” The wall took ten days for volunteers to piece together, and was inspired by the joyrides Sagmeister took on his scooter while on a year-long holiday in Bali.

“Functionlessness has always played a big role in human history,” Sagmeister said. “It’s the difference between going for a walk in Millennium Park and commuting to work.” [via Chicago Magazine]