—Mawra, what role do unpredictability and mistakes play in your work?Mawra:—There are points where I embrace them, and others where I decide something won’t be part of the work. For example, in my installation
Residents of Non-Binary Space, I initially planned to make three panels: one for foreign land, one for homeland, and one for the “third space,” the in-between. But when I made the first two, I questioned whether a third panel would actually serve the concept—because the third space doesn’t physically exist. In the end, I displayed only the two panels, placed apart, and invited viewers to walk between them. Their movement created the in-between space.
Similarly, in animation, I often make thousands of frames, but later cut many of them out and not use them at all. Once, I even wrote a poem to use as narration, but eventually decided the visuals alone conveyed what I wanted, without words. So omission becomes central—I leave things out deliberately, letting viewers interpret the work themselves.
— As you mentioned, some omissions are orchestrated not in the work itself, but in the space where it’s shown, like in a gallery. But what if we don’t have much control of the space where the work is exhibited, like, let’s say, in digital viewing on Instagram?Mrudula:—I try to make the most of the platform. On Instagram, I love seeing illustrators use carousels to show one long image broken into frames—it feels like walking through a gallery. So there are ways to regain some control, if you’re mindful of the boundaries of the medium.
In my MA at Kingston, I also explored how text itself could function as illustration. Depending on the composition and the mode of display, even a single letter could become an illustration. So for me, (re)defining what illustration is may also help to regain some sense of control and authorship.
— When you use typography and text, it often feels poetic and subtle, integrated with the image. How do you work with omissions in text?Mrudula—For me, image and text usually develop together. It’s not that I finish one and then add the other. I keep text minimal—just enough to guide the viewer without spelling everything out. I want to suggest a direction, but leave space for interpretation. Sometimes a phrase will shape the drawing, or the drawing will make me revise the phrase. I go back and forth, letting both evolve together.