West Windsor Arts Council presents the fourth annual Artworks, an exhibit highlighting student artists from the West Windsor-Plainsboro schools, on Saturday June 6, from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the WWAC outdoor gallery space under the tent at West Windsor Farmers’ Market.##M:[more]##
Sandy Bonasera and Diane Lufrano, the two art coordinators for the school district, made a call for art from the teachers and ensured there was a variety of work from the first to eighth grade students. The artwork includes various two dimensional pieces made with pastels and tempera paint and range from self-portraits to landscapes. Three dimensional paper mache and ceramic fruits and vegetables connect the exhibit to the farmer’s market ambiance.
“The show gives the community an opportunity to view the wonderful talents of our WW-P students as well as the expertise of the instructors,” says Ruth Kusner Potts, the president of the arts council. “For WWAC it is such an honor to see the pride of the young artists as they see their works hung in a public place. They are always so proud of their work and to see other market attendees comment on their work to the artists is just terrific.”
The arts council has selected 11 Saturdays throughout the summer and early fall to host engaging events for market attendees and their children. The events will encourage the attendees to experience various art forms in the casual setting.
The arts council announced “Celebrate Americana,” a summer music outdoor program over six evenings at Nassau Pavilion in Nassau Shopping Center. This year’s productions will explore the richness of American music through artists who exemplify the diversity of America’s song.
The first performance in the series kicks off with Swingadelic on Saturday, June 13, at 6 p.m. The band, often been referred to as New York Metro’s greatest “Little Big Band,” presents jazz standards from the Ellington, Gershwin, Porter, and Sinatra songbooks mixed with more contemporary tunes.
Other performances in the Saturday evening series include Monday Blues on June 27, School of Rock on July 11, Music Together on July 25, Sandy Zio on August 8, and Riverside on August 22. All are free and begin at 6 p.m. at the outdoor pavilion between Panera Bread and Target. In the event of rain, the performances will move indoors to Panera Bread.
Tyco International recently awarded $25,”000 to the arts council to support the conversion of the old Princeton Junction Firehouse into the West Windsor Arts Center. “We are pleased to support this project to create a new home for the arts in West Windsor,” said Ed Breen, chairman and CEO of Tyco. The check was presented on the second floor of the Alexander Road Firehouse to Potts, the current president; Paul Cerna, the founding president; and West Windsor Mayor Shing-Fu Hsueh.
“This is the largest corporate contribution we have received to date,” said Potts. “Our goal is to raise $300,”000 and this contribution helps us surpass our interim goal of raising 45 percent of the funds before we publicly launch our Home is Where the Art is! Capital Campaign.”
“We can’t imagine a better use of our 78 year-old firehouse than for it to become a lively community arts center for West Windsor,” says Hsueh, who established a task force that led to the creation of the West Windsor Arts Council in 2001.
The arts center will house a 125-seat performance space as well as an education space to hold art classes. The lobby will be available for community gatherings and can become an after school meeting place for students. “We applaud the West Windsor Arts Council and West Windsor Township for their leadership and vision to transform this historic firehouse into a thriving community center with a very bright future,” added Mr. Breen.
Other contributions to date have come from the West Windsor Township Community Foundation, Princeton University, NRG, Energy, InterCap Holdings, Whole Foods, the Boyle Family Foundation, Boston Properties, the Dreher Group, Mack-Cali, AT&T Foundation, and three families donating $1,”000 each. The arts council’s two “Cabin Fever Cabaret” events raised more than $25,”000 for the capital campaign. These contributions and the Tyco award bring the total to $141,”370.
