Beyond Design: Building Ecosystems for Arts, Play & Learning

Author(s):
Natasha Sharma, Community Design Agency and Govandi Arts Festival

In this masterclass, Natasha Sharma, Co-founder and Curator of the Govandi Arts Festival, who also leads Public Art and Design programmes at the Community Design Agency, shares how abandoned spaces in Mumbai’s Natwar Parekh Colony were reclaimed as community-led environments for children and caregivers. Drawing from eight years of work in Govandi, the session shows why better childhoods mean reimagining the whole neighbourhood, not just designing spaces for children.

WHAT TO EXPECT / WHAT YOU WILL LEARN

Participation Through Arts and Play

Use arts and play as tools to bring children and caregivers into the design process, and centre children’s imaginations in what gets built.

The Neighbourhood as Childhood

Recognise the whole neighbourhood as a space for childhood, and reimagine overlooked and abandoned spaces as places for children and caregivers.

Iterative, Low-Cost Design

See design as an iterative and adaptive process, working with existing conditions through simple, low-cost design elements.

Ownership and Sustained Programming

Build community ownership and local leadership, and sustain spaces beyond construction through deep programming.

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