Lady Gaga and Polaroid

When I was in high school, Polaroid came out with a camera that shot mini polaroid photos. Smaller than the 3″x3″ ones with the white boarder we’re all so familiar with. This was before digital cameras were in everyone’s pocket, before cell-phones had built-in cameras. This was the late 90’s- early 2000’s.

This polaroid camera was geared towards “fun and funky” young adults and the photos had wacky prints with wild colors on the boarders. My friends and I spent hours snapping photos of ourselves, flapping the yet-undeveloped photos back and forth, waiting to see what would emerge.

Several years later, Polaroid closed its doors on the instant photography schtick, unable to compete with the digital photo world.

Well, Polaroid is planning a come-back! (Kirstie Alley, take note!) And while I don’t know if they will be able to fully regain the place they once held in the marketplace, I predict they will do interesting things while they try. Especially because they hired Lady Gaga as their creative director. Meow.

They are planning a specialty line of instant film and other products with the Haus of Gaga, and this will be a multi-year partnership.

There is a certain kind of romance with a polaroid photo. The movie “Memento” would have been trite, I believe, had the guy carried around a digital camera. “Wait, hold on a moment. I need to scroll back through my trip to the coast…”

This is why I think Lady Gaga’s involvement is a great idea. It’t theatrical, and I dare say frivolous. But so should be polaroid. I think it works.

I wish them luck with this endeavor.