Malavika Rao (she/they; b. 1994, Chennai, India; lives and works in Los Angeles) is an interdisciplinary artist working in painting, ceramics, fibre and installation. In her work, Malavika is drawn to craft, as it grants them the power to travel through time. The knowledge of craft is typically passed down through interpersonal relationships, generally between women. Malavika believes that these relationships, specifically the ones that develop within the domestic space, are inextricably linked to craft. They are the intertwining threads of what sustains the practice of love. Through time travel, Malavika is able to communicate with the past to further understand it, and envision multiple futures. In their work, Malavika aims to create new worlds at the intersection of these pasts and futures for herself, in the hopes that these spaces can be powerful realms of healing, resistance and love.
Malavika received their MFA in Art from the California Institute of the Arts in 2023, and their B.A in Fine Art and Religion in 2017.