Thomas Duffield: Portfolio Review

I managed to get very lucky with getting Thomas to review my work. Duffield was one of the deciding factors for me even choosing to come to this university; his work captivated me that much. 

Tom told me that my work was very poignant and that he learnt a lot from me. He described my work as powerful as I am confronting stereotypes and even ignorance without pushing my faith onto other people. He said it was like my work was taking the viewers hands and telling them to look at what faith means to a family. 

He said that the way I described how my family interacts with their own faith was significant. Tom also said that the project had a really strong potential of coming together in a photobook. 

Some significant advice he gave me was to not overthink what I think the viewer wants to see and not to let my own experience- things that I would find boring, block me from taking those images. 

He suggested a text called 'Renew the Encounter’ by RaMell Ross, who describes the black experience in Alabama. There was a line that tom qouted to me where Ross says “Only your own lived experience has irreducible similarity.” Tom then explained to me that my familiy’s experience is unique to us and that if I tell this story then the work is going to be nuanced and different as it is coming from a really pure part of me. He said there is an outlet for this kind of work and that I’m on the right tracks. 

It was such a good tutorial, and Tom really encouraged me to push harder and create more work. It gave me more enthusiasm to put into my work and hearing that what I was trying to communicate was effective was amazing. He encouraged me to honour my intuition and of something fails, then I don’t have to show it. Hearing that was exactly what I needed in that moment as I have a perpetual fear of failure and I was honestly struggling to come up with ideas for the project. Having this review with Tom, allowed me to stop doubting myself so much and to trust in the work that I was creating, so this review was very important to me.