JOY
In the Future
Isabella Matthews
My partner Lilly holding our dog Baxter. The future is bright because she feels joy. I hope one day we are able to feel joy all the time without the worries of the future and worries of the present. I love them and want the future to be full of happiness and calm. The future is bright because of joy.
My friend and housemate Crissy smiling in the sun before the coming rain. She wears fun sunglasses as she soaks up the sun. The pressures of everyday are gone. I hope she is able to do mundane events all the time in the future that bring her happiness. The future is bright because of joy.
My friend and housemate Haniya laughing as she tells a story of her childhood surrounded by plants that she loves. Memories are made every day. She is caught experiencing a funny memory. I hope we will make more happy memories in the future. The future is bright because of joy.
Artist comment: As college students with a constantly changing world and environment, we are anxious for the present and scared for the future. But, we have each other and ways to make each other happy in everyday situations. We don’t need a lot to experience joy which can be hard to acknowledge. We look for things to give us the greatest amount of satisfaction but small moments can bring the happiest memories.
Lilly and Bax, my partner and our dog, were running around until they were tired. Lilly usually hates photos so I just tried to capture a moment where she wasn’t focused on the act of posing and taking a photo. Crissy loves sunbathing so we went outside to soak in the sun rays. I made a joke and the outcome was her smile and her laugh. I asked Haniya to tell me a story. She was very focused on posing so I asked her for a memory and she told me a funny event in her childhood. I made a joke about something that both made us laugh and she was able to relax and experience a moment of joy.
I hope the future is more joyful and we are able to experience days away from the stressfulness and the rush and bustle of capitalism. We feel this constant pressure to be doing more. The future is bright because they are in my life. Their joy is my joy.