The fine art of life, recession and the pursuit of happiness

Later this month, the Office for National Statistics will be asked to devise some new questions to add to its regular household survey. The details haven't yet been revealed, but the hope is the answers will provide a quarterly snapshot of the nation's mood swings.

It's been something of a pet project for David Cameron. While still in Opposition he memorably called for "general wellbeing" to be assessed alongside traditional economic indicators. The idea, he said, was "there was more to life than money" and as swingeing public spending cuts begin to bite, he's no doubt hoping the results will prove him right.

However, it seems a group of Yorkshire artists are already one step ahead of the Prime Minister.

Working under the collective name Invisible Flock, Ben Eaton, Victoria Pratt and Richard Warburton have devoted the last month attempting to find exactly what it is that makes people happy.

"The seeds of the idea were sown more than a year ago," says Ben. "At the time everyone was talking about the recession and how grim the future looked.

"We were sick of hearing politicians describe Britain as a broken society. We wanted to show that despite everything that was happening economically and politically it's often the small things which make people happy."

Having secured the use of an empty shop unit in the centre of Leeds, the trio began asking passers-by to pinpoint on a large map of the city a time and a place when they were happy.

With the details recorded and with the event ranked on a happiness scale of one to 10, a length of glass rod is then placed on the map. The higher the ranking, the longer the rod.

"Perhaps not surprisingly, there are clusters around the city's hospitals as people remember the birth of their children," says Ben, who recently moved the installation from the Light to Kirkgate Market. "We've had some really heart-warming stories; the other day, a woman stopped by after having just been given the all clear from cancer.

"There has also been quite a lot of focus around Elland Road. People tend to forget the bad times and instead remember the one football match that left them ecstatic.

"When we started this project we had no idea what the reaction would be, but people seem to have really embraced it.

"The range of memories has been incredible, from the Second World War veteran who said he was happiest when all he had to do was carry a kit bag around, to schoolchildren who are just happy to be with their friends."

When the Bring the Happy project comes to an end later this month, the 3D map will be donated to a good home and the various memories will provide the foundation for Invisible Flock's next production on the nature of happiness.

Ben admit's the results don't hold up to scientific scrutiny, but they are not the only ones to come to the conclusion that material wealth does not equal happiness.

Recent research from the University of Bath claimed that while the Western world has spent decades and incalculable amounts of time and energy aspiring to fame fortune and world domination, happiness is actually being kept alive in one of the poorest countries in the world.

According to the university's Wellbeing in Developing Countries department, eight out of 10 people in Bangladesh - a country where almost half the population lives on less than $1 a day – describe themselves as "very happy".

"Some of the older people we spoke to strongly valued close and harmonious relationships with family members to an extent that it even enabled them to ignore physical hardship," said a spokesman for the project. "Even though they don't get enough food to eat, these people were still happy because they have good relationships with the rest of their family.

"Income is important, but a good quality of life is dependent on a much wider criteria than just money.

"A good salary alone does not make people happy, we are all trying to achieve something more than just material wealth."

All of which should be music to Mr Cameron's ears.