W.I.P Labs · Creative Arts Exploration · Ages 5–18
Working artists in your school. Children make, perform and listen.
W.I.P Labs brings practising artists into your school for a day, two weeks, a term or a whole year. Children make, perform and listen, instead of only studying the arts. No child needs prior experience, and every programme ends in a public sharing for parents, peers and teachers.
Why artists in schools
Good schools run strong art, music and dance periods, with committed teachers and decent rooms.
Standing access to working artists in puppetry, theatre, sound, movement, film and live code. These are the forms where contemporary Indian performance is changing fastest, and the people who practise them rarely sit on a school's vendor list.
We find, brief, contract and host the artists, design the programme with your arts and academic leads, bring the equipment, document the work and report on it. Your teachers work alongside us and keep the method after we leave.
Art-integrated, experiential and multidisciplinary learning, delivered by practitioners rather than described in a textbook.
Fits art-integrated projects, co-curricular slots, clubs, activity weeks and annual days.
Built for CAS experiences and projects, MYP and DP arts components, and Extended Project style work for older students.
A process book for every child and a short impact report for the school, so the work can be assessed and shown.
What students make
At IIAD, a four-week elective took about 100 students across puppetry, immersive media and sound design to a public showcase. Students who had never built a puppet performed original puppet works four weeks later.
The evidence
Arts learning is not a soft extra. The strongest studies show gains in writing, behaviour, empathy and engagement. They do not show that the arts raise maths or reading scores on their own, and we will not claim they do.
In Houston, 42 schools were chosen by lottery to receive about five more arts partnerships a year, from field trips to artist residencies. Pupils had 3.6 percentage points fewer disciplinary infractions, higher writing scores (+0.13 SD) and more compassion for others. 10,000+ pupils, grades 3 to 8.
Bowen and Kisida, randomised trial, Journal of Policy Analysis and Management (2022)
The UK Education Endowment Foundation's review of 80 studies finds that arts participation adds roughly three months of progress in other subjects, at very low cost, with drama linked to better writing.
Education Endowment Foundation, Teaching and Learning Toolkit
The OECD's review of the evidence finds that classroom drama, where children act out stories, strengthens verbal skills, and that music has a causal effect on verbal skills. It also cautions that transfer should not be the main reason to teach the arts.
OECD, Art for Art's Sake? (2013)
In 16 Baltimore classrooms, fifth graders taught science through the arts retained content better at a delayed test, with the largest benefit for weaker readers, and no one learned less.
Hardiman et al., Johns Hopkins, Trends in Neuroscience and Education (2019)
Eight weeks of twice-weekly school dance improved 6 to 7 year olds' inhibitory control and working memory.
Rudd et al., Psychology of Sport and Exercise (2020)
PISA's first creative-thinking assessment covered 64 countries and economies. Pupils who did art, drama, creative writing or programming about once a week scored higher.
OECD, PISA 2022 Results Volume III (2024)
Why now, for CBSE schools
Art-integration is named as a cross-curricular pedagogical approach to be built into classroom teaching.
Classes IX and X: at least one Art-Integrated Project in every subject, counted in internal assessment.
Projects for Classes I to X use art forms of the paired State or UT, and must be reported on the KALASETU portal before admit cards are issued.
A national directory of 1,400+ programmes by 300+ artists and groups, used by 95% of government schools, with co-funding and an Artist-in-School scheme.
Creative practitioners placed in schools for cross-curricular projects. The national evaluation found slightly better progress than comparable pupils at all three key stages.
Every preschool has an atelier and an atelierista, a trained artist who works alongside class teachers.
IB MYP schools must run at least one interdisciplinary unit each year; Finnish schools must offer at least one multidisciplinary module. A Naya Canvas residency can be that unit.
Five art-education approaches tested in 9 government schools with 3,988 pupils and 89 teachers, led by the Delhi government with NalandaWay.
An Integrated Arts Programme for Grades 1 to 5 pairing English with dance and visual arts, and Hindi with theatre.
An honest note
The honest reading: five UK randomised trials found no significant gain in English scores, the claim that music makes children smarter does not survive careful meta-analysis, and many positive studies are small. The case for the arts rests on engagement, behaviour, writing, empathy and the work itself.
An audience at a studio sharing. Every residency ends with one.
Programmes by age
For the youngest children the arts are play with a purpose: hands, ears and bodies first, words second. Shorter sessions, more movement, and a finished piece by the end of the week.
Build simple puppets from cloth, card, paper and found objects, then bring them to life and tell a short story without words.
Leaves with A puppet they made and a two-minute puppet show for their class.
Walk the school with ears open, record the sounds they find, and arrange them into a sound map and a short sound story.
Leaves with A class sound map and a recorded sound story.
Make drums, shakers and rattles from everyday objects, then learn simple call-and-response rhythms.
Leaves with A class rhythm piece performed together.
Move like animals, weather and machines, then build a short moving story with a beginning, middle and end.
Leaves with A moving story shown at assembly.
Play instruments, voices and found sounds together, deciding as a group when to start, stop, get louder or go quiet.
Leaves with A short improvised concert for parents.
Combine puppets, sound and movement into one small performance made by the whole class.
Leaves with A 20-minute shared performance and a printed process book.
This is the age when children want real tools and real audiences. These studios give them both: professional kit, working artists, and a public showing they are responsible for.
Write a story, design a character, build a jointed puppet, then rehearse and perform it with live sound.
Leaves with An original puppet and a live puppet show.
Record school and neighbourhood sounds, design sound for a scene, and produce a short radio feature.
Leaves with A sound piece and a broadcast-ready radio feature.
Play ensemble games, use image and forum theatre techniques, then devise a short play from the students' own questions.
Leaves with A devised performance for the school.
Explore free improvisation through movement, voice and instruments: listening, leading and following without a script.
Leaves with A public improvised performance.
Write simple programs that make images and sound, then perform them as a live coding set.
Leaves with A generative artwork and a live coding mini-concert.
Use projection, light and sensors to turn a room into an interactive experience.
Leaves with A small interactive installation.
Learn strength, balance and rhythm from Manipuri martial arts and contemporary dance, then build a short piece.
Leaves with A group choreography.
Learn foundational rhythms on the parai and other hand drums, and talk about where the instrument comes from.
Leaves with A percussion piece performed live.
Record the school's air, water and wildlife, then make sound and visual responses to what they find.
Leaves with A sonic and visual ecology exhibit.
Older students are ready to treat the arts as serious practice, and to build the portfolios, projects and leadership record that universities look for. These studios are close to what we teach at university, adjusted for school timetables.
Treat sound as a dramatic instrument: field recording, acoustic ecology, spatial audio and live sound for a scene.
Leaves with An original sound work for a live performance.
Find an idea, write it, shoot it on location, edit it and premiere it, as fiction, documentary or experiment.
Leaves with A finished short film and a public screening.
Write code in real time to generate music and visuals, building to a live set.
Leaves with A live coding performance.
Build a collective immersive work with projection mapping, sensors, generative visuals and sound.
Leaves with An interactive installation shown on campus.
Use objects and puppets as serious dramatic material: dramaturgy, design, movement and sound.
Leaves with An original object theatre piece.
Make performance about identity, power and memory through devising and ensemble work.
Leaves with A devised performance and a written reflection.
Build movement vocabulary, choreographic thinking and body awareness.
Leaves with A short choreographic work.
Record, interview, edit and broadcast a feature, and learn recording ethics and independent media practice.
Leaves with A broadcast-ready audio feature.
Document process, write an artist statement, then curate and install an open studio.
Leaves with A portfolio and a curated exhibition.
How we teach
Children make something every day, share it unfinished, and look at it together the next morning.
Children are assessed on curiosity, risk-taking and reflection, not on a polished final piece.
Something gets made every day and shown unfinished. Nothing rests on one big performance.
Every session is led by a working artist, with a class teacher in the room who learns the method too.
Every studio is designed for children who arrive with no background in the form.
Parents, peers and teachers see the work at the end, and we document it for the school.
Every child keeps a process book: written, drawn or recorded.
Formats
| Format | Duration | What it is | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|
| Workshop Series | 4–6 weekly sessions of 90 min | One art form explored in depth, ending in a small showing. | Co-curricular slots, clubs, term enrichment |
| Two-Week ResidencyFlagship | 10 school days, 3–4 hrs a day | A full studio on campus. Children work in one or two art forms, build original work and present it publicly. | Project weeks, summer or winter intensives, inter-term breaks |
| Term Elective | 8–10 weeks, 2 sessions a week | A credit or co-curricular studio course with a process journal, a mid-point review and a public showcase. | Electives, CAS, project components |
| Annual Artist Partnership | One academic year | A visiting artist every month, one residency, and a resident ensemble such as the Dilli Improvisers Orchestra. | Schools building a signature arts identity |
Every programme is designed and costed with the school after a conversation, based on the grades, group sizes, art forms and dates you choose. Artist fees, materials, equipment and documentation are included.
Schedule a call with us to understand more and how we can bring this to your school.
We listen to what your school needs, then begin with one art form and one group.
One grade, one or two art forms, a public sharing.
A credit or co-curricular studio with assessment built in.
Monthly artists, a residency, a resident ensemble, teacher development.
The flagship
Pick an age band to see one sample plan. We co-design the final version with your arts and academic leads.
| Day | Ages 5–8 · Our Story Box | Ages 9–14 · Puppets with a Sound Score | Ages 14–18 · Sound and Screen |
|---|---|---|---|
| 01 | Meet the artists, first sound walk | Ensemble games, story seeds | Landmark works, listening exercise, Improvising Leader session |
| 02 | Make puppet bodies from found materials | Character design and puppet mechanics | Field recording, story fundamentals |
| 03 | Faces, voices and puppet movement | Puppet fabrication | Pitch ideas, choose a form |
| 04 | Record the sounds of the school | Field recording and sound design basics | Writing, sound design plans |
| 05 | First sharing: puppets meet the sound map | Work-in-progress critique | Guest masterclass and critique |
| 06 | Swap studios, try the other art form | Script, structure and sound score | Pre-production, crews assigned |
| 07 | Choose the story, build the story box | Rehearse with live sound | Shoot day |
| 08 | Rehearse with puppets, sound and movement | Technical rehearsal | Edit and sound mix |
| 09 | Dress rehearsal | Dress rehearsal and documentation | Picture lock, final mix, exhibition install |
| 10 | Parents' sharing | Evening sharing for families | Public screening and exhibition, with certificates |
Each residency uses three or four practitioners, with one adult for every 10 children aged 5–8 and one for every 15–20 older students. Class teachers join each studio so the school keeps the method.
Leadership and the long view
Drawn from the arts-based learning programmes we run for management students at IIM Ahmedabad and elsewhere. A natural fit for student councils, prefects, service learning and CAS projects.
| Module | Format | What students build |
|---|---|---|
| The Improvising Leader | 1 day – 1 week | Deep listening, decisions without a script, leading and following in a group. |
| Theatre of Presence | 2 days – 1 week | Presence, public speaking, reading a room, handling ambiguity. |
| Listening as Leadership | 1 day, or an elective | Active listening and attention, first developed for IIM Ahmedabad. |
| Sound, Story and Strategy | 2 days – 1 week | Narrative, pitching and persuasion through sound, rhythm and silence. |
| Object, Material and Making | 2 days | Systems thinking and problem solving by building objects and stories together. |
| Arts for Social Change Sprint | 1 week, one practitioner a day | Theatre, public art, storytelling, folk arts and ecology, closing with a collective public intervention. With practitioners from Aagaz Theatre Trust, Aravani Art Project, Khabar Lahariya and Adavi Arts Collective. |
One practitioner a month across the year: masterclasses, open studios and performances open to every student. We find, contract, host and introduce each artist.
The Dilli Improvisers Orchestra, India's first improvisers orchestra, runs open weekly rehearsals any student can join without an audition, and performs each term.
An ecology and sound programme in which students record and respond to the school's own environment, building an archive over the year.
A student-led festival or listening day produced with W.I.P Labs, modelled on W.I.P alt.FEST and the Listening Otherwise conference.
Co-teaching and short training sessions so your faculty can carry the methods into regular classes.
Who we are
W.I.P Labs grows out of more than twenty years of making, teaching and producing experimental and contemporary art by its founders and the artists around them. Naya Canvas is not a vendor programme: it is run by working artists and producers, and it draws on a network of some of India's most respected practitioners.
W.I.P Labs (Work In Progress Labs) is a New Delhi-based, artist-run collective and creative studio for experimental, interdisciplinary and critical art. We curate, produce and teach, and we build platforms where artists, audiences and institutions meet.
Our work runs across festivals, residencies, productions, installations and education. Creative Arts Exploration (CAE), our education wing, designs courses, labs and electives with universities and design schools. Naya Canvas brings that work into schools.
Most of our recent teaching has been at university level. Naya Canvas takes the same methods, practitioners and studio rhythm into schools, with pacing, materials and safeguarding set for each age.
Our flagship multi-arts festival of alternative and experimental practice, across Bengaluru and New Delhi.
India's first improvisers orchestra, founded by Baan G and Vaibhav Batra under the mentorship of Raymond MacDonald of the Glasgow Improvisers Orchestra. Part of GIO Fest 2025.
India's first international, practice-led conference on improvised music, at CEPT University and Kanoria Centre for Arts, Ahmedabad (Feb 2026).
A co-creation lab on sound, ecology and climate with Soumik Datta Arts, at Triveni Kala Sangam (Dec 2025).
A curated programme of workshops, performances and talks at Goethe-Institut / Max Mueller Bhavan, New Delhi.
Dastaan LIVE's rock opera with M.K. Raina, produced by W.I.P Labs: more than 50 shows across 15 cities.
A sensor-driven bamboo installation at Bengaluru International Airport, Terminal 2.
Artist-led programmes for teams, most recently two-day workshops for women professionals at ITC Limited.
| IIAD, New Delhi | Electives in Puppetry and Animation, Sound Design and Computational Arts, and Immersive Art. A four-week CAE elective for about 100 students across puppetry, immersive media and sound design, ending in a public showcase. Students who had never built a puppet performed original puppet works four weeks later. |
|---|---|
| CEPT University, Ahmedabad | The Critical Sound Design studio, which received the CEPT Excellence Award. |
| IIM Ahmedabad | Sound as Storytelling and Listening as Leadership, for PGP and PGPX students. |
| Ashoka University | Visiting faculty, Department of Performing Arts: Critical Sound Design and Creative Music Exploration. |
| UID, Karnavati University | Headed the Sound Department and studio for Bachelor's students in Animation, Film and Game Design. |
| O.P. Jindal and Shiv Nadar universities | Visiting teaching in sound and performance. |
| Schools | Workshops at Shiv Nadar School, Pathways School and The Heritage School, plus Sri Ram Centre for Performing Arts and Triveni Kala Sangam. |
The team
Founder & Artistic Director
Artist and sound designer since 2001Venice · Edinburgh · KampnagelAshoka · CEPT · IIAD · IIM-A
Baan G is an interdisciplinary artist, sound designer and composer who has worked in music, performance and experimental arts since 2001. He has performed and recorded with Grammy winner Ricky Kej, Bernie Marsden (ex-Whitesnake), Shubha Mudgal and Rabbi Shergill, and his sound work has been presented at the Venice Architecture Biennale, Edinburgh Fringe, Kampnagel Hamburg, the Singapore Arts Festival and WORM Rotterdam.
He founded the art-rock project Dastaan LIVE and co-founded the Dilli Improvisers Orchestra. He has taught at Ashoka University, CEPT University, IIAD and IIM Ahmedabad, and headed the Sound Department at UID, Karnavati University. He is an ARThink South Asia Fellow and a Fellow of the RSA (UK), and received the British Council's Young Creative Entrepreneur award.
Founding and Managing Partner, and Executive Director
300+ programmes producedIP lawyer, NLU LucknowTeaching Associate, CEPT
Kirti is an arts producer and curator with a background in intellectual property and corporate law. She trained at Dr. Ram Manohar Lohiya National Law University and worked as an associate at Cyril Amarchand Mangaldas and Bharucha & Partners before moving into cultural production, and cleared the Indian Navy's JAG examination. She drafts intellectual property policies for universities and educational institutions, and advises artists, collectives and communities on their work.
At W.I.P Labs she has programmed and produced more than 300 workshops, performances, talks and installations, 100+ film screenings and four festivals, and leads contracts, partnerships and production. She was Teaching Associate for the Critical Sound studio at CEPT University in 2026, and earlier ran media, content and legal for two editions of the Mahindra Sanatkada Lucknow Festival.
Project Manager, Naya Canvas
NET-JRF qualified researcher6+ years in culture and community programmesYour single point of contact
Tanu is a feminist practitioner and NET-JRF qualified researcher with more than six years across development, culture, field research and community programming. Her work sits where research, gender justice, culture and community meet: turning careful listening into programmes, stories and structures people can actually use.
At Naya Canvas she runs each programme day to day, from the first call to the final impact report, and is the school's single point of contact.
The Common Breath co-creation lab cohort, Triveni Kala Sangam.
The artist network
Practitioners who have shaped Indian puppetry, theatre, music, dance and new media, many of them for over two decades. Practitioners are confirmed for each programme according to dates and the art forms you choose.
Theatre, puppetry and storytelling for young audiences
PuppetryOne of the leading figures in Indian puppet theatre. Trained at the Dramatiska Institute, Stockholm, and in Guaratelle glove puppetry in Naples. Founded Katkatha in 1998, has directed over 15 shows for children and adults, and received the Sangeet Natak Akademi's Ustad Bismillah Khan Yuva Puraskar for puppetry (2006).
Object theatreObject theatre artist, puppeteer and writer, and artistic director of Tram Arts Trust (Mumbai and Delhi). Began in children's theatre with ANANT in 1998, performs with Katkatha, received the Ustad Bismillah Khan Yuva Puraskar and has served on ASSITEJ India's executive committee.
PuppetryDelhi puppet builder, puppeteer and designer, and founder-director of Puppetshala Performing Arts (2009). Trained with Dadi Pudumjee and Anurupa Roy, received the Ustad Bismillah Khan Yuva Puraskar (2014), and leads participatory puppetry workshops for all ages.
Theatre for childrenDelhi theatre artist, writer and translator who specialises in theatre for children, as actor, facilitator and assistant director. A core member of Khilona, she co-created Zig Zags to Earth, a shadow-puppetry show about the water cycle.
Film and shadow puppetryFTII-trained filmmaker and artist working across film, animation, shadow puppetry and sound. Co-created Zig Zags to Earth with a collective that received the ThinkArts Grant for Children (2022); Serendipity Arts resident, 2024.
TheatreBengaluru actor, director, poet and theatre educator, and a founding member of Jangama Collective. Trained at Ninasam and Singapore's Intercultural Theatre Institute, works in storytelling and theatre-in-education with young people, and received the Shankar Nag Theatre Award (2023).
Music, sound, movement and media
ImprovisationSaxophonist, composer and academic, and a key figure in the Glasgow Improvisers Orchestra. Has worked with Marilyn Crispell, David Byrne and Damo Suzuki. Mentor to the Dilli Improvisers Orchestra.
PercussionPercussionist, singer and composer rooted in Carnatic music: mridangam, konnakol and world percussion. OneBeat fellow (US State Department); has worked with A.R. Rahman and M.M. Keeravani, featured on Coke Studio Tamil, and taught masterclasses at Berklee.
DanceDance practitioner working across performance, research and pedagogy. Trained at Laban, toured with Shobana Jeyasingh Dance Company, and helped build Gati Dance Forum and the MA Performance Practice (Dance) at Ambedkar University.
Sound & improvisationSound artist and educator who performs with modular synthesisers and field recordings as Psychopanda. A proponent of free improvisation and deep listening, and co-founder of the Dilli Improvisers Orchestra.
Live codingCreative technologist across film, music and the web, active in Mumbai's electronic music scene since 2008. Co-founder of Algorave India, which promotes live coding as performance.
MovementChoreographer and founder of Nachom Arts Foundation in Manipur, whose Yangshak Movement draws on Manipuri martial arts and contemporary dance.
DanceChoreographer and dancer whose work draws on deep listening and expressive arts practice. Her performance Suraiya is a Country turns the oral histories of elders into live dance.
Immersive mediaImmersive media artist at Curiouswala Studio, working with projection, light, sensors and interactive installation.
Music & AIResearcher in the Opera of the Future group at the MIT Media Lab and a LEGO Papert Fellow, working on composing, performing and learning music with AI. Studied at MIT, UPF Barcelona and IIT Madras.
Scope of work
| W.I.P Labs | School | |
|---|---|---|
| Before | Scoping call; programme design with your arts and academic leads; artist selection and contracts; safeguarding clearance to your requirements; kit and materials list; schedule and room plan; parent note. | One point of contact; grades, group sizes and dates; rooms and timetable slots; your child protection policy; consent forms sent home. |
| During | Three or four practitioners on site; all specialist equipment and materials; daily sessions and sharings; a project manager on call; daily session log; photo and video documentation. | A class teacher in every studio; access to rooms and power; a darkened room for projection and sound; help with assembly or parent sharing logistics. |
| After | The public sharing; edited photos and video with usage rights (subject to consent); every child's process book returned; an impact report within 30 days with recommendations. | Feedback from teachers and students; a review conversation about the next cycle. |
Safeguarding
Start a conversation
30 minutes with your arts and academic leads to understand what you need.
A format, the age bands and the art forms.
We draft the programme, scope and costs for your approval.
Confirm dates; we handle artists, kit and documentation.
Download the brochure (PDF, 2 pages)Naya Canvas for schools (PDF, 20 pages)
Most schools fix next year's budgets in February and March. Talk to us by January for an April start.
Tanu
Project Manager, Naya Canvas
Kirti Sharma
Founding and Managing Partner, and Executive Director
Anirban Ghosh (Baan G)
Founder & Artistic Director
W.I.P aDDa, Lado Sarai, New Delhi
