Living Polaroid Lifts

In this workshop, participants will learn the fundamentals of the Polaroid emulsion lift process while exploring the material possibilities of working with natural and living surfaces. Through a hands-on, experimental approach, the session considers how photography can extend beyond the image itself, becoming tactile, mutable, and alive. Emulsion lifts may shift, decay, grow, or transform over time, existing both as evolving processes and as artefacts to be preserved.

What You Will Learn

Participants will be guided through the essential techniques required to successfully create a Polaroid emulsion lift, including handling the delicate emulsion layer and understanding the interaction between liquid, surface, and image.

From there, we will expand the process both conceptually and materially, transferring images onto a range of organic and found surfaces such as stone, wood, shells, glass, fruit, leaves, and other textured or unconventional materials.

Workshop Flow 

1. Foundations of Emulsion Lift
We begin with the core principles of the process, including step-by-step technique, material behaviour, and key troubleshooting tips for achieving a successful lift.

2. Material Experimentation & Expansion
We move into working with alternative surfaces and explore how different materials influence the transformation of the image. Participants are encouraged to bring their own objects or “canvases”, anything from shells and stones to glass or organic matter - to experiment with.

3. Preservation, Time & Living Works
The final section focuses on preservation and transformation over time, exploring durability, shelf life, and how emulsion lifts behave when applied to perishable or living materials. Participants are encouraged to document these ongoing changes as part of the work’s extended life cycle, and I will also introduce a method for expanding the work into biomaterials and handmade paper, which can then be used as a substrate for seed germination around your visuals.

Materials & What to Bring

Provided in the workshop:

• Polaroid I-Type printer (used to print images during the session via phone)
• Polaroid film (included in workshop fee)
• Approximately 4 emulsion lift images per participant
• All basic materials required for the process

Participants who already own Polaroid I-Type or 600 film (colour or black & white) are welcome to bring it for additional experimentation, though this is not required.

What to bring:
Participants are encouraged to bring natural or found materials that reflect the idea of “living”, such as fruit, shells, stones, leaves, glass, or other organic objects. These will act as experimental surfaces or “canvases” for image transformation. You are also invited to title your material exploration around the idea of “living - the thought as it grows into more.” 

About the Workshop

This is a beginner-friendly workshop designed to encourage experimentation, curiosity, and material exploration.

Facilitated by Riya Panwar

Riya Panwar is an alternative visual artist working across materiality, experimental photography, and expanded image-making practices. She holds an MA in Visual Communication from the Royal College of Art and develops research-led work focused on sustainability, imperfection, and the transformation of images across living and evolving surfaces.