Joan Pallé's 'Unhappy Youth' at Centre d'Art La Panera

Joan Pallé's exhibition 'Els joves infeliços / Unhappy Youth' at Centre d'Art La Panera in Lleida, Spain, from 21 February to 24 May 2026, explores the paradox of youth unhappiness in an era of clarity. The show features monumental black-and-white photographs of young people in goth and black metal makeup, mounted on raw wooden scaffolding, alongside sculptures including a classical bust, a figure with a flame head, a blackened VW Golf GTI with a crouching figure inside, and a steel structure with chains and a 'YOUTH' logo. Curated by Sjors Bindels, the exhibition references Pier Paolo Pasolini's diagnosis of consumer society to argue that today's youth see the trap but cannot escape it. Pallé dedicates the show to the young people of Lleida, questioning whether subcultural refusal remains possible when even dissent is commodified.