Author and artist Namrita Bachchan realised the power of language very early on because of the patriarch of her family, the esteemed poet Harivansh Rai Bachchan. She herself “was a shy but imaginative child with an inner world I spent a lot of time in and wanted to express.” So she found herself drawn to both writing and creating art. Consequently, in A Full Circle, verse and imagery collide together to form an extraordinary experience. A beautiful testament to the power of poetry and art seeped in a mother-child relationship, the poem in A Full Circle delves into the world of the author’s five-year-old daughter. Accompanied by fantastical illustrations, the book is crafted to indulge you in a wondrous escape, powered by language and curiosity.
Below, she acquaints us further with the book’s creation and composition:
The Conception
My five-year-old daughter, and the deep and dimensional bond I share with her, inspired the book. I had hoped to compose something which would be captivating for her as a child, yet also hold meaning down the line as she matured into an adult. Something gleaned from my life experience that could perhaps serve hers. I didn’t sit down to write something with purpose, though; rather, a simple thought opened out into exactly the kind of poem I was hoping for and this work was born.
The Creative Process
Well, since I had a poem which was fixed, it sort of functioned as the armature of the book around which the imagery unfolded. I work freely and intuitively in general, yet this was the first time (out of three illustrated books) that I composed using a storyboard and it made such a difference to how I perceived the piece; as a whole, with a flow. I used the narrative of the poem as a guide to navigate my huge pool of reference photographs and that’s how it found shape. I love experimenting with materials and am as likely and comfortable using professional artists’ tools as fun kiddie stationery. Play and discovery are central to my process and that’s why my work is analogue — hands on paper — because it allows for serendipity. I didn’t know what this book was going to look like, I just set out with an open mind to find out.
The Symbiosis
Bringing poetry and art together is always a challenging symbiosis and yet, funnily, it comes naturally. It is my preferred way of self-expression as I have always found that words and images work very much in tandem, almost as a single combined language. Neither one embellishes or illustrates the other, rather, they are their own entities, hopefully broadened and heightened by the presence of the other.
The Pandemic
As someone who works alone in a studio at home, social distancing is kind of my way of life, so not that much has changed. Of course, having a young and energetic child to engage all day takes its toll on even the most patient parent! But all in all, it’s been a time of peace, creativity, quality time, and accomplishment for me.
This article is an exclusive from our January 2022 EZ. To read more such articles, click here.
Text Nidhi Verma
Date 20-01-2022