As of 16 July, DHUB Montcada will be hosting an exhibition devoted to the souvenir, a must-have fetish object on any trip, which becomes a metaphor of the tourist experience.

“The Souvenir Effect. Travel Fetishes. Beyond Clichés, curated by Òscar Guayabero, reflects on the souvenir as a symbol, on its meaning, its function and its usage as a metaphor of memorable moments. Visitors to the show will be led through the history of this object—a markedly kitsch example of art—via a number of sections, highlighting the souvenir as a fetish, the souvenir as a relic and the serial souvenir or metasouvenir.

DHUB’s latest expositional offering opens at the height of the tourist season. It proposes a reflection on a contemporary phenomenon which nevertheless has its roots in the early journeys of pilgrimage and conquest. On the Grand Tour of the 17th and 18th centuries, the need arose to possess objects from the places visited as proof of having being there and having lived through experiences there.

That need evolved, as did the means of travel. Souvenirs ceased to be just a single item and became something to be tailor-made for the tourist—an object that would be iconic of a city, a place or even a historical period.

Further information
“The Souvenir Effect"