Portal de Turismo de Castilla y León

Dates

15 April to 24 May 2026

When?

Currently

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From April 15th and within the framework of the VI International Photography Festival of Castilla y León (FIFCYL) , the Provincial Historical Archive of Palencia celebrates the "Joy of Living" with an exhibition of photographs taken from its own collections, from both professional photographers and private individuals.

After more than 2,500 years of reflection, debate, and discussion in the Western world, we still haven't reached a consensus on what happiness is and how it manifests itself. Happiness, contentment, satisfaction, well-being, joy—a state of spiritual and physical contentment free from inconveniences or pain, perceived subjectively, that is, by each individual who experiences it. It is a personal state, not attributed from the outside, and can be perceived in different ways; the same situations can be perceived as attributes of happiness by some and of dissatisfaction by others, depending on their temperaments.

We can't even agree on whether happiness is a complete and total state or merely transitory, whether it's a destination or a journey. We can't even agree on whether it's possible, since many believe there are only fleeting moments of happiness.

Of course, it has been represented in many ways: as a goddess by the Romans carrying the cornucopia, as a mystical ecstasy, or as an image of unwavering serenity, unaffected by circumstances. We have even tried to measure it, as in rankings of the happiest countries in the world.

Photography is an art of moments, since an image only captures a thousandth of a second. But like all art, it can take us beyond what is represented. A frozen instant becomes immortal, just as a memory can become an image of lost happiness, which is yet another of human desires: to evoke moments that were perceived as happy.

Thus, the images that show us the joy of living reveal the personal feelings and outward expression of each person's happiness. The subjective sensation becomes transparent, allowing us to recognize ourselves in each of the feelings perceived in that instant, because we all want to attain that bliss, or remain in that state, or remember that moment when we were like them.

We can't say what happiness consists of for each person, but we can recognize that there's one ingredient that emerges when well-being manifests itself: the naturalness with which it's expressed. This is the main ingredient that appears in this selection of photographs from the Provincial Historical Archive of Palencia, a collection of images that evoke the joy of living when happiness fills us and the naturalness with which we express it.

Schedules:

Monday to Friday: 09:00 to 14:00 h. and 19:00 to 21:00 h.
Saturday, Sunday and public holidays: 12:00 to 14:00 and 19:00 to 21:00.