A4CT’s Archive
Endre Tót, Joy/Gladness Series (1971-1979)

In the 1970s, Endre Tót responded to the oppressive atmosphere of socialist Hungary with an unexpected artistic strategy—joy. His Joy/Gladness series emerged as a conceptual reaction to censorship, isolation, and ideological control. Rather than directly confronting repression, Tót embraced absurd euphoria as a means of subversion, using humor and irony to reflect on the absurdity of forced optimism under totalitarian rule.

The series began in 1971 with a simple yet radical piece: a postcard-sized print reading, “I am glad that I could have this sentence printed.” This seemingly trivial statement carried deep political implications in a regime where even the smallest printed materials required state approval. The phrase became the prototype for his later works, all of which revolved around variations of the statement “I am glad if/when…”—a conceptual strategy that turned an imposed emotion into a tool of critique.

“My ‘Joys’ were the reflections of the totalitarian state of the seventies. I responded with the absurd euphoria of Joys to censorship, isolation, suppression sensed in every field of life, though this suppression worked with the subtlest means, hardly visible. Nonetheless I was not a so-called politically committed artist. I responded most indirectly to the age I had to live in. With humour and ease, and some philosophy. I consistently avoided dark colours and drama in the works. If I disregard the stifling effect of the ideology of the age, I would say these were the joys of loneliness, the delight of solitude. Something one can experience in suppression, but in the greatest freedom as well.” – Endre Tót, 1995

About the artist:

Endre Tót (b. 1937) is a Hungarian conceptual artist known for his subversive use of joy as an artistic and political statement. Initially a painter, he shifted to conceptual and action-based art in response to the repressive climate of the 1970s. Through printed works, performances, and mail art, Tót challenged authoritarian control with irony and simplicity. His work remains a powerful testament to the role of art in resisting ideological oppression.