Mildred Duffield is a multidisciplinary artist whose practice combines painting, video, sculpture, print and digital art to investigate the themes of obsession, fetishism and the uncanny through the visual language of the ‘early’ internet and its surrounding fandoms and subcultures. Her work examines how identity, desire and meaning are constructed through the images we consume and circulate online. Drawing from the aesthetics of anime, manga, memes and digital communities, Duffield explores the emotional intensity of online attachment and obsession. Her practice is rooted in a fascination with the internet as a cultural space where this obsession is performed, commodified and endlessly reproduced.

Through processes of appropriation, Duffield reworks found imagery into artworks that connect physical and virtual spaces. She often employs traditional processes, such as painting and soft sculpture, to recreate imagery that reflects the visual language of the net. By translating digital imagery through labour-intensive, handmade processes, her work emphasises the role of care, time and individual authorship in image-making. Through this approach, Duffield engages with contemporary concerns surrounding AI-generated content, emphasising the value of personal and handcrafted work within increasingly automated digital environments.