The Vancouver art scene is exploding due to the rise of retail/gallery spaces which open up their doors and their walls to artistic interpretation, allowing local and amateur artists to have their chance to display their work to the critical public. A collection of line-drawings, Polaroid?s and sketches took over the walls at the Islands exhibition at Goonpack, creating a highly personal and subjective atmosphere. Transformed into a visual manifestation of two artistic interiors, Goonpack became its own self-contained and reflective artistic island. Upon walking through the back doors, the viewer was greeted with a large and mountainous mural watching over the attendees and surrounding art. Dominating the space, this piece by Justin B. Williams exemplifies the rise of temporary site-specific artworks which are increasing in popularity as a new form of artistic expression. Blocks of pastel colours were the foundation for a collection of faces, figures and short phrases which provided the viewer an impressive and detailed work to study. Highly personal, the mural represents Williams? mountains of memory and experiences, as he was influenced by his cat Sa Voie?s wall watching habits. The cat observes figures of people having sex, talking heads and short phrases resulting in a non-object based work which is its own entity. Mountains, the ever confounding and paradoxical ?cool?, and anxious body parts of a barely matured generation penetrate the mural. This artist?s work was the most visually engaging to study, as the meticulous details and un-trained artistic ability of his work cultivated further reflection--the art was imitative without any self-reflexivity, honest without any intention.

Facing the mural was a collection of personal photographs, graffiti and sketches that were arranged on the wall in a similar fashion to one?s boudoir. If the opposing wall presented a painted representation of the artist?s memory, nostalgia and reflection, then Thomas Stavnes' collection of mixed media exposed his personal experiences to the public. It is as though the space was transformed into the artist?s bedroom, as Stavnes stated that ?the photos are not arranged in any specific way?it is how they are placed in my bedroom.? The most engaging part of Stavnes? work was his collage of personal Polaroids which functioned as individual and psychological studies of his friends and family at their most vulnerable. Photos from parties and family events arranged on the wall in no thematic groupings called up a teenager?s bedroom full of photographs, magazine clippings and random homemade artworks: simultaneously voyeuristic, innocuous and slightly exploitative.

With no thematic or formal similarities, Stavnes' work presented a juxtaposition of rich pictorial vocabularies that reflected the popular graffiti and line-drawing style that has permeated the Vancouver retail/gallery art scene. Islands was an appropriate title for the exhibit, as the two artists works were personal, introverted and contained in their own meaning. Two poles of artistic subjectivity and interiors were presented at the exhibit, revealing to the viewer conflating attempts at self-expression, nostalgia and memory. Similar to being stuck on a deserted island, it is as though these works un-scathingly presented the artists own personal narratives and experiences. Unfortunately, the exhibit could not transgress the increasingly popular modes of artistic practice that have permeated contemporary art; line-drawings, sketches, ?bad? yet ?good? drawings, graffiti and photography. Personal memories, experiences and emotions were presented to the unknowing public without any captions or artist statements, leaving the viewer to try to interpret these self-contained and exclusive artistic ?islands? for themselves.