Current Exhibit - A Polaroid Story

Photography by Chris Bentley and Jim Davis

When you walk into Endie Gallery right now, you’re not looking at a wall of perfect photographs. You’re looking at a wall of memories. Dozens of polaroids stretch floor to ceiling, each one proof of a moment lived here in the Treasure Valley. They’re raw, imperfect, and unapologetically human.

Polaroids carry a magic that digital devices lost—the click of the shutter, the whir of the film ejecting, the slow reveal as the image comes to life. Sometimes the picture lands. Sometimes it doesn’t. But either way, it’s real. These photos capture life the way our minds do: partial, fleeting, and soaked in story.

One of my favorites from this series came from the Gem State Fair. The film smeared across half the frame, wiping out the face of the vendor I’d just spoken with. In the moment, I was disappointed. But now, when I look at it, I remember every detail of that conversation—where he and his wife found their jasper, the polaroid I gave them in return, and the wonder of not knowing how their photo turned out. That’s what makes this wall powerful. The failures are just as alive as the successes.

This exhibit started small—just a handful of snapshots pinned to the wall. Over time, it’s grown into something much bigger, an archive of a year spent in motion. Together, the photos remind us that life doesn’t wait for perfection. You step into it, you take the shot, and you carry the memory forward. That’s what this wall is: not pictures, but proof that we were here.