Exhibitions

LAUGHTER: A SERIOUS EXHIBITION

Electricity Museum / Lisbon

20 October 2012 to 17 March 2013

The EDP Foundation presents a great exhibition on laughter at the Electricity Museum. Co-organised with Produções Fictícias, “Laughter: A Serious Exhibition” includes painting, drawing, installations, video, photography, sculpture & performances, film, cartoons, television programs, shows, literature, works by national and international artists, from some of the most important museums and private collections.

Curated by José Manuel dos Santos, João Pinharanda, Nuno Artur Silva and Nuno Crespo, this project arises from a profound investigation into comic and humorous devices, as they were and are used by different protagonists, at different times and in different fields. 

“And because nothing is more serious than laughter, creating an exhibition on that subject is, in our times, to think critically about life, the world, society”, says José Manuel dos Santos, the EDP Foundation’s Cultural director. From art to history, literature to film, philosophy to theology, politics to sociology, psychology to medicine, the exhibition also includes some unprecedented pieces commissioned by the EDP Foundation especially for this exhibition.

 “Laughter: A Serious Exhibition” is comprised of almost five hundred works by more than 300 artists and occupies the Electricity Museum’s entire exhibition floor. After great bibliographical (Callas, Amália), thematic (POVO/People, LÁ FORA), modern and contemporary art (Manuel Baptista, Vick Muniz, Julião Sarmento, Joana Vasconcelos, Edgar Martins, Vieira da Silva, Vitor Pomar, EDP New Artists Award) exhibitions presented at the Electricity Museum in Belém, the EDP Foundation marks the new season with this exhibition whose doors are open to the public until 17 March 2013.

Admission to the exhibition – which is open every day from 10am to 6pm (except Monday) – is free. Guided tours and children’s workshops are subject to prior booking.