Decode the kolam by clicking and dragging over each box to reveal a 1 or 0. The center is always blank. As you fill the matrix, the translation will update. You must complete the matrix, to reveal the full message.
I developed a program that translates text into Kolam designs using binary code. Kolam (or Muggu) is a South Indian tradition where women draw intricate rice flour patterns on the floor each morning. Through this translation, I trace connections between kolams, gender, and computation, honoring computational lineage outside Western patriarchal frameworks. I created this system in 2022 as a matrilineal mourning ritual, translating three names into kolams: Swarajyalaxmi (my late grandmother), Kameswaramma (her mother), and Rajyalaxmi (her grandmother). At transmediale, I expand this into a participatory installation, drawing kolams with rice flour and turmeric containing encrypted messages visitors can decode here, where they can also encode their own kolams. You can read more about the work here.