Maripol, Queen of Polaroid, Gives Us Gift-Giving Wisdom

vor 4 years

Maripol, the original Queen of Polaroid, needs no introduction, but in case she does…

In 1977, Maripol was gifted a leather-clad Polaroid SX-70 camera from her boyfriend for Christmas. This gift changed the course of her life. Her influential Polaroid shots of Andy Warhol, Jean-Michel Basquiat, Madonna, Keith Haring and Naomi Campbell, for example, documented an incredibly poignant time of history in New York City, while pushing her own creativity onto each image by painting onto the film and experimenting with various techniques made possible with a Polaroid. Of course Maripol is still aligned with Polaroid (may She always be!) and for this holiday season, she spoke about her own methods of gift giving and gave us a little bit of inspiration to, first and foremost, ENJOY the process of gifting to your loved ones.

"The best gifts are from the heart. I often gift fresh pomegranates and lemons from my garden. I like to take Polaroid photos of people- often strangers- and gift them as one-of-a-kind artworks. Sometimes I use marker pens to personalise the photos to add something even more unique. I call that a gift of love and communication."

"I'm a Taurus, so I am very practical. I plan everything. Every part of a gift should be considered, useful, and beautiful. All things can be repurposed in new ways, especially by creatives!"

"A Polaroid photo captures emotions, one's true self. It's not about being perfect, like digital selfies where people only post the version they feel happiest with: (analogue) is about capturing something real, genuine, and with meaning. It is a meaningful gift to give a Polaroid camera or film or photos. It allows someone to capture an unedited memory I time."

"Creating an album of memories is a truly special gift. I stumbled upon postcards written by my father to my mother when clearing out our family home and it was incredible.. It was a glimpse into a different time for them and their relationship. An album is a wonderful gift-- a special chapter in life that you or future generations can look back on."

As a side note: we are happy to announce that Fräulein has teamed up with Polaroid in the new year, and you will be seeing a lot more of these beautiful images in 2021.

All images are courtesy of the artist Maripol