Mike Brodie, the “Polaroid kid”.

Born in Mesa, Arizona, USA, in 1985, Mike Brodie shows us an almost cinematic American reality of his territory, the United States, already well documented by great photographers.
Mike’s adventure comes to life when, at age 17, he finds a forgotten camera. He began his illegal journeys on freight trains in 2002. Jumping from train to train on the sly, from image to image he documented his experience as a nomad punk, from the suburbs in the United States, which would later give him the nickname “Polaroid Kid” – the kid who takes instant photographs with his polaroid.
From a short trip it became a long-term project lasting two decades, which already has 4 photo books and a documentary on production.
In his first exhibition in Portugal, at Adorna gallery, he presents a work that features a selection of 74 original polaroids and his most recent book in the form of a screen-printed box containing 50 polaroid reproductions, published by Stanley/Barker.
We feel the contemplation of places and portraits in years of journeys made of discovery and encounters from which we cannot remove the photographer from the scene. Although his images may seem harsh, portraying less polished people in the eyes of an acetic society, we observe a universe where freedom and recreation full of spontaneity are felt. Noam Chomsky said “From the propaganda system, there is a constant pressure to make people feel that they are helpless, that the only role they can play is to ratify decisions and consume.” When we look at these images that Mike captured, we feel the love he has for this places and for this community that tries to live outside the neoliberal system that Chomsky speak.