Se Souvenir de Vancouver, a new show at the Toast Collective, features a collection of images by UBC Photosoc Studio Manager Peter Holmes that consider the so–called “tokenization of human experience.”

Holmes illustrates this concept with a series of pieces focusing, ironically, on the photography of tourist spots around Vancouver. Using a pinhole lens, he has captured day-to-day scenes of Vancouver tourists snapping shots of the oft–advertised points of interest many Vancouverites are familiar with. Subjects include the totem poles in Stanley Park and, of course, the Gastown steam clock.

Holmes succeeds in evoking a sense of reminiscence, visually. Looking at images, the viewer essentially experiences a recollection of a memory. Holmes’ photos demonstrate how we, as humans, tend to reduce entire concepts and sensory experiences into dim suggestions the past. The works lead us to question the very notion of image-taking. Each suggests that human experience is a commodity; we use cameras to collect experiences, and at a later date we may produce the photo as proof that it occurred.

The exhibition’s iconoclastic tone is fascinating. Each image presents a popular tourist scene, but Holmes has taken care to focus on the photo takers (who themselves remain quite indistinct), rather than the object of tourist interest itself. Making the subject of the photo taker, combined with the blurriness of the composition, lends the original subject a sense of meaninglessness. The images imply a sense of distance; we are drawn away from any potential spectacle we may have experienced due to the aesthetic or historical nature of the original subject, and left only with a glimpse into the endless reproduction of an item of apparent importance.

This is a popular theme in contemporary art (the works are very reminiscent of esteemed contemporary painter Gerhard Richter) and it is difficult to say that Holmes has offered any sort of fresh perspective on the subject. But the handling of subjects that are relevant to us Vancouverites does offer a local commentary on this “tokenization.”

While the exhibition is small, arty types may still want to check it out since the gallery is one of the few which remains unaffected after the harsh cuts in BC arts funding. It’s privately funded, and regularly hosts work by a small band of local talent. At least go for the hipster–kitsch—it’s so rad, there isn’t even a sign on the front door.

Se Souvenir de Vancouver runs from Friday, November 6 to Monday, November 23 at the Toast Collective, on 648 Kingsway.

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