Eddie Perenyi

Insert Coin to Continue is a project about “third places”– a space that sits outside of work or the home, one built on shared communal experience; where the focus is play, not productivity. Like many other third places, arcades are at a crossroads, facing closures as technological changes and economic factors threaten their existence.

This series challenges their perceived obsolescence through documenting and celebrating the remaining arcades in the city, from repurposed warehouses to casino basements. Each photo aims to transport the viewer, encouraging them to place themselves in the arcade, getting lost among the bright lights and overwhelming sensory experience. The work is created using primarily analog techniques and printed on backlit durtatran material to replicate the tactile aura of each venue and machine.

Insert Coin to Continue is part of a larger body of work exploring the relationship between neoliberal economic ideology and its impact on communal spaces.