In this conversation, Nava Derakhshani speaks to David Mann about her evolving practice, and how different cities - along with their particular socioeconomic and political contexts, environments, histories and ways of working - have necessitated key shifts in her approach to art-making.

Movement necessitates change. The act of travelling to different places with new contexts shifts our ways of seeing and engaging with the world, and influences our understanding of the places we've journeyed from. This is true of artists, too. In addition to training, collaboration and exploration, an artist's practice is deeply affected by the places in which they live and work.

The artist Nava Derakhshani has, over the years, worked across ceramics, performance, photography, video and installation, moving from architectural studies to artistic practice.

Born in southern Africa to Iranian parents, Derakhshani has lived, studied and worked in cities including Cape Town, Mbabane, Gaborone, Johannesburg and New York, where she has recently completed her MFA at Hunter College.

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David Mann: You've moved across architecture, photography, collage, performance and now ceramics and sculpture. What has remained constant for you across all these shifts, what is the conceptual thread that runs through your work?

Nava Derakhshani: For me, the impulse has been around art making through material exploration, and the seeking of joy through the specific medium. Clay, for example, is a grounding material that requires patience and attentiveness from the maker.

I wanted to become a master thrower, and...