I’ve recently been spending a bit of time looking through my archive of Polaroid images. I say archive, because I have hundreds. Almost 15 years worth, ranging the original 600 stock before it was discontinued, onto the Impossible Project’s early experimental packs, B&W, patterned frames, to Polaroid Originals’ most recent version.
In 2012 I presented a small pop-up solo show at the deceased Cakey Muto in Homerton. Titled ‘When we were young lovers.” I produced some enlarged Polaroid shots, as an almost 3-dimensional exhibition, scrapbook aethetics a plenty.
This is a format I’ve always been drawn to. along with my vast collection of cameras, even those with film no longer readily available. These rainbow striped cameras have been by my side at most landmarks of my life, sharing a hospital bed with me after I had my Son, and then each birthday since. It’s become a tradition for me, to bring one along to any project, capturing the atmosphere, a reminder in the aesthetic I’m aiming for, a confirmation that my ideas are working.
Often test shots for film or photo shoots, I’ve often placed these instants centre stage. There’s something about the square image, the unknown, holding my breath each time I click the shutter. And looking over these shots, boxes full of locked moments it now all makes sense.
Long live Polaroid.
