Joel Potter

Exploring identity beyond appearance through photographic portraiture.

My project explored how photographic portraiture can represent identity beyond appearance. The brief was open, allowing me to question what defines a portrait when the self is not directly shown. I considered how traces, spaces, and personal objects could act as extensions of identity, drawing from both theoretical and practical research.

The project challenges the assumption that portraiture must show a person’s face or form. Through experimentation with subjects and environments, I developed a body of work that examined the tension between representation and interpretation. At the same time, the project unfolded into an exploration of how the photographs created a tension between myself as the photographer and the subject being represented.

This work contributes to conversations about identity and representation in photographic practice, proposing that portraits can exist through the traces of life rather than the direct likeness of a person. It aims to expand how portraiture is understood in contemporary design and visual communication.