She Only Needed... Poems and Polaroids

The smallish city where I live, nestled in
and among the Plains of the Mid-West
has a thriving art community. Although
it struggles to hold the attention of the
general public, there are many individuals
tirelessly working to schedule and promote
art events here.

Final Friday is one such event. It always
occurs on the last Friday of the month
and is an opportunity for all the art
exhibits displayed throughout, in either
galleries, retail stores, or museums, to
stay open during the early evening hours
for visitors to wander from place to place,
even catching the city trolley to that
next stop, enjoying the many diverse
artistic offerings.

This last weekend, I attended a Final
Friday book signing and art show that
had me down to the bones excited! The
artist, Kate McBride, who is really a writer
and film-maker, is a city native but has
actually been living and traveling abroad
for many, many years.


During her world adventures she journaled
her experiences by taking Polaroid snap-
shots and writing poetry inspired by those
captured images. The result of her efforts
is a selection of pictures and words published
in the book, Poems and Polaroids - I Journey
With You.

Inside, the clean crisp layout of stark
white pages containing the most ethereal
images and haunting poetry spoke to my
very core.

Her verses were truly imbued with as much
color as her photos. Although most of the
poems and Polaroids are somewhat abstract,
each piece definitely grabs the reader pulling
them towards another time and place.

I was also incredibly intrigued by the way
Kate choose to log her experiences, which set
my creative wheels turning fast and furious.

With my own upcoming travels only a
month away, I began pondering this idea
of incorporating these same techniques
into my travel journal.

But I began to wonder if I could find the
same type of Polaroid camera, as hers is
an older model and out of production, or
would I even have the space to pack such
a bulky piece of equipment in a suitcase
that will already be bulging with art
supplies for the workshop.

But it would not take long before
the universe would step in, creating
what I think is a very serendipitous
moment, with the arrival of the latest
issue of Better Homes and Gardens in
my mailbox.

There on page 26 of the magazine was
an article discussing the new breed of
point-and-print cameras that deliver
pictures about the size of a credit card.
THIS WAS PERFECT!... as my Italy journal
(which I can't wait to share with you
in my next post)... is long and narrow.

There are several brands of mini size
instamatic classics, both the Polaroid
300 and the FujiFilm Instax Mini 25...

SO, if you have ever used one of these,
have any advice on how to take the
best image with an instant camera,
or just want to offer words of
encouragement for this endeavor,
I would love to hear from you!