Sylveon Pin, Black Oval Pin with Foliage Pattern, Classic VW Pin
Makers unknown, dates: unknown
Hard Enamel
Dimensions variable
Purchased from Curoie at Magical Girl Convention, Toronto, Summer 2019;, previously belonged to Jade Chen and gifted to Zahra Rashid in 2019, previously belonged to Gabby Dujmovic and gifted to Zahra Rashid in 2018.
Among three pins that I own, one is of Sylveon, a Pokemon character, one depicts a floral design, and one is in the form of a VW van. I collect pins as away to express myself and as a sort of souvenir to remember different events. Then I display my collection in an Ita Bag, which is a type of bag that originated in Japan and is made with a special clear pocket to allow the owner to display their pin collection without risking losing their pins.
The most recent pin that I acquired out of these three is the Sylveon pin. It was purchased at a Magical Girl Convention in the summer of 2019 that I attended with a group of friends. Not only is it a way to honour my favourite Pokemon, but it reminds me of that day when I look at it.It also is a way for me to carry around memories of my childhood, as Pokemon played an important role in my childhood. The second most recent pin I acquired out of the three is the black and floral pin. It was gifted to me from a high school friend, Jade Chen, in 2019 for my birthday. Even though all of my friends from my high school art classes went to different universities, we made sure to get together to celebrate birthdays. As I was very homesick last year and missed having a solid group of friends, it was nice to have a little gift from my friends to carry around.
The last pin is the oldest pin out of the three. During my last year of high school (2018) I took part in a school exchange with my school’s Positive Space group. We went to BritishColumbia to examine what B.C. was doing for the LGBTQ community and then they came here to learn the same thing. Out of all the people I met on the exchange, one of the people I befriended was Gabby Dujmovic. We joked about her driving to Ontario in a VW van to visit when we were in university, however we knew it was highly likely we would never get to meet in person again. As the exchange was coming to an end, Gabby gifted me the pin to remember the trip. The Sylveon figure and pins share a significant connection both to each other and to the exhibition. In the past, or my childhood, I collected Pokemon figurines and they were quite important to my brother and I. Now they have come to memorialize that childhood. Similarly, I began collecting pins that I thought were pretty or aesthetically pleasing. Now they have become something I collect to remember different events. All have become important to me at this particular moment, representing connections to my family and friends while isolated.
Zahra Rashid