Let's Vance

There nothing glamorous about Seventies snapshots. They were mostly shot on cheap cameras with plastic lenses, using budget film. Over time, the pigments have all degraded and the colours look dreary. That's before you even get into the fashion crimes of the era and the background scenery of woodchip paper and Formica-covered radiograms.

Well, that's the snob's version of it anyway. The other approach is to celebrate the connection in the photographs, the shy smile between the subject and the family member with the camera. Snapshots and Polaroids often have a deal of trust, a kindness in the face that's readily shared. They are generally taken on special occasions, on summer trips and Christmas gatherings, so there are party clothes, fancy hairdos and old relationships being revived.

I'm thinking about all this as I see the exhibition from Joanne Vance. She has shipped everything back to Belfast, giving us the chance to see the pieces that were previously featured on the Foy Vance album, 'Hope'. As a reference to the family's freewheeling history, she calls it 'Hope (and Homeless)'. You can feel the affection, pulsating though the eccentric colour schemes and the dazzle of flash bulbs. Ultimately, the pictures have soul.