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For centuries philosophers have attempted to define wellbeing. For Aristotle we achieve eudaimonia, or

flourish, when we live a life of virtuous activity and fulfill our human capacities. The late 20th and early 21stcenturies have witnessed an explosion of interest in the topic of wellness as TV personalities, spiritual leaders,health professionals, psychologists, sociologists, business people, environmentalists, politicians, writers andartists have all sought to redefine our understanding of a life well lived and answer the questions: how can welive meaningful, happy and healthy lives? How do we flourish?

Emerging at the beginning of the millennium, Positive Psychology, a recent branch of psychology, hasdevoted the past decade and a half to examining the subjective experience of wellbeing, aiming to enhancehuman strengths such as love, creativity, joy, flow, and vocation. Positive Psychology founder MartinSeligman coined the acronym PERMA to summarize five essential pillars of happiness: positive emotion,engagement, positive relationships, meaning and achievement. Leading researcher in the field of PositivePsychology, Mihaly Csikszentmihaly emphasizes the importance of creativity in stimulating wellbeing, arguingthat flow, the creative moment when a person is completely immersed in an activity that is engaging andchallenging for its own sake, is a natural anti-depressant.

Recognizing the relationship between employee wellbeing and productivity, many corporations, non-profitsand institutions of higher learning have begun to institute their own wellness programs. Happinessconsultations services and community groups have proliferated in recent years, servicing businesses andindividuals alike. Courses on wellbeing are increasingly featured in non-psychology-related academicprograms with classes on happiness now routinely taught on business, athletic, sociology and communicationcourses.

The importance of wellbeing is being recognized not only by individuals, businesses and other organizations,but also by international assemblies and governments, many of whom are now shaping public policy inaccordance with metrics of wellness. In 2011 the UN General Assembly adopted the resolution Happiness:

towards a holistic approach to development, urging member states to recognize that the pursuit of happiness is afundamental goal in the lives of all human beings. This initiative was hosted by Bhutan, the tiny Himalayankingdom whose leaders famously introduced a new measurement of national prosperity, focusing on peopleshappiness rather than economic productivity, entitled gross national happiness (GNH) in the 1970s.

In 2012 the UN held its first Happiness Conference, which brought together representatives fromgovernments, academia and civil society. Speakers, presenting the latest research on the causes of happinessand areas in which public policy can support wellbeing, argued for a new paradigm for social and economicdevelopment where progress would be measured by quality of life, not just standard of living. Influential USeconomist Sach's noted "The US has had a three time increase of GNP per capita since 1960, but thehappiness needle hasn't budged () Other countries have pursued other policies and achieved much greatergains of happiness, even at much lower levels of per capita income." A World Happiness Report published

after the conference identifies nine domains of Gross National Happiness (GNH): Education, Health,Ecological Diversity and Resilience, Good Governance, Time Use, Cultural Diversity and Resilience,Community Vitality, Psychological Wellbeing, and Living Standards and contends that affluence has broughtwith it its own set of negative health outcomes, including obesity, diabetes, eating disorders such as anorexia,psychological afflictions, rising anxiety levels associated with the insecurity of modern living, and loss ofcommunity and social networks of support. It suggests that gross domestic product is not the ultimateindicator of happiness; political freedom, strong social networks, an absence of corruption, good mental andphysical health, and job security are also important.

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Montalvo will seek to enrich and enliven the ongoing, international conversation about wellbeing through a

new multi-year programming initiative spanning 2013-14. Flourish: Artists Explore Wellbeingwill featureexhibitions, performances, participatory engagements, workshops, conversations and screenings, developed incollaboration with artists from the Lucas Artists Residency Program.

Flourish: Artists Explore Wellbeinginvestigates the intimate interconnections between personal wellbeing,thriving communities and a healthy planet through a series of related topics, including:

The interrelated health of the body, mind and spirit. Countries with advanced economies like theUS are nevertheless experiencing severe health crises among their citizenry, including such mentalillnesses as depression and attention deficit disorder and physical ailments like obesity and diabetes.How do we attain good emotional and physical health? How does emotional stress impact thehealthy functioning of our bodies? How do our mental, emotional, physical and spiritual experiences

overlap and inform our sense of wellness?

The intimate relationship between what we eat and how it is produced and human, social,environmental and economic wellbeing. Increasingly, we are recognizing the importance of foodnutrition for our cognitive and physical health, as well as the inequities and threats associated withcurrent food production policies. How does sitting down for a meal promote emotional and physicalnourishment? How does it cultivate a sense of community? How can we support environmentallysound agricultural practices?

The important role that social relationships play in emotional wellbeing. Research suggestsrelationships shape our personality and influence our physical and mental health. Through highquality social relationships we experience affection, intimacy, and nurture, all of which fosterswellbeing. How do we build strong communities with high degrees of trust and empathy? How canwe support family life? How can we practice compassion for others and for ourselves?

The critical relationship between individual wellbeing and our environment. As earths lifesupport systems food supplies, clean water, stable climate necessary for human health andwellbeing continue to deteriorate, how do we forge new sustainable relationships with the variousecologies upon which we so intimately depend? How do we develop a better appreciation andunderstanding for the intimate connection between the health of our natural environment andindividual wellbeing?

The role of "sacred and healing spaces in generating wellbeing. As we wrestle with thedemands of modern life, increasingly we seek to identify spaces where we can connect with our innerand outer selves, recharge and build capacity and strength. Where are these "sacred and healingspaces? Why are they meaningful? What can the nature of these spaces tell us about emotional andphysical wellness?

The affinities between play, creativity and wellbeing. Play, as an exercise of the imagination,enables us to test out possible models of behavior and broadens our perspective and capacity forcreativity, innovation and collaboration. How can Montalvos175-acre Public Park become an arenato explore the intersection between play and wellbeing?