Smiles can reduce stress even if they’re self-induced and not spontaneous. Well, all one has to do is look at the news to get stressed out. So today I will try to smile as much as possible.
Smiles improve mood because they release dopamine and endorphin, the feel good chemicals.
Smiles also make you more attractive and more approachable. When someone smiles at you, often we respond automatically with a smile of our own.
Kit Marlowe (1564-1593) was an English playwright who introduced “comic relief” during the Elizabethan era. When a play is dark and heavy, comic relief moments help the audience catch their breath before moving on with the plot.
Some smiles in art:
St John the Baptist by Leonardo
The Ricotta Eaters by Vincenzo Campi c. 1585
Related: A History of the Smile in Art, Why were faces in most paintings of the past rarely portrayed smiling? + The Serious and the Smirk, The Smile in Portraiture +
Smiles in portraiture + The Evolution of Smiles in Art: A Journey Through Time + Why Are Smiles so Rare in Art +
Who Really Invented the Smiley Face? + The Earliest Known Photos of People Smiling + How Did the “Smile” Become a Friendly Gesture in Humans? +
Smile + When did humans start to smile? +
The Narrative Within 