Unnon
Terracotta

2021
 

Unnon—a word used to initiate a conversation, loosely translating from Tamil to English as “And then”—became the starting point for this project. During a conversation with Bhagya, who cares for Namma Katte, she said: “If nobody listens, Namma Katte hears us.” Her words made me pause and consider how a space itself can hold stories, how its walls absorb voices, silences, and the emotional weight of everyday life.

This reflection led to a collective act of making. Together with the women of Namma Katte, we hand-crafted nearly 700 terracotta ears. Each ear was shaped through touch, conversation, and shared time—turning a simple gesture of listening into a communal practice. These ears were then installed across the walls, transforming the space into a living, listening surface.

The installation proposes that architecture can become a witness: a place where unheard voices accumulate and where ignored emotions may find grounding. Unnon becomes both an invitation and a promise—an invitation to speak, and a promise that the space will listen, even when people do not. Through these terracotta ears, Namma Katte is recast as a site that hears, remembers, and holds the stories entrusted to it.