Art, drama, film, and more are available in your own backyard. Several new teaching artists and trainers are offering new classes for adults and children at the West Windsor Arts Council.
Aparajita (Pooja) Sen of West Windsor is one of the new instructors. Born in New Delhi, India, she was inspired to begin drawing and sketching by her grandfather, who was a well-known artist. She worked in the financial and banking fields for many years, but her strong desire to study art led her to change careers and enroll in art classes at the Visual Arts Center in Summit. She has since had the opportunity to work with award-winning artists and has begun her own teaching practice.
Sen will be teaching Adventures in Art for children ages 7 to 10 and 10 to 14 on Saturday afternoons. “Children will develop their inner creativity and imagination while focusing on exploring new ideas and discovering the endless possibilities of colors and shapes,” she says. “Students will work in various mediums like pastels, oil pastels, charcoal, markers, acrylic paints, and mixed media to create representational and abstract compositions inspired by everyday life.”
Bollywood Strength Training will be taught by West Windsor resident Manisha Lalwani on Monday nights and Tuesday mornings. Lalwani has a bachelor’s degree in psychology and is a certified personal and group fitness trainer. “My intention to help others is based on my personal experience, as a working mother of two, when I discovered that strength training and healthy eating habits helped me battle fatigue,” she says. “My goal is to help people deal with their health issues and motivate them to make their bodies work with maximum efficiency and energy enabling them live life to the fullest.”
Vijaya Balakrishnan of West Windsor resumes her hatha style tween and teen yoga class and a kid’s yoga class on Tuesdays. She is a certified hatha yoga and children’s yoga teacher registered with the Yoga Alliance. Balakrishnan began to practice yoga as a preventative measure to avoid diabetes and high blood pressure. Having experienced the benefits of yoga, she was drawn to pursue teacher training to equip herself with the expertise to share this ancient tradition with others. She has developed yoga programs specifically for children from pre-K to teens as well as adults. “My passion is to share the joy of yoga with others, helping people to live a better quality of life with vitality, peace, and harmony,” she says.
“Energy in Motion,” a photographic exhibit featuring works by residents of West Windsor and the surrounding towns, is on view in the gallery. Brian Seidenfrau, a former resident of West Windsor, uses new techniques as a photographic artist. “Many of my photos are local to our area, and my photo of the dinky train station is very popular,” he says. The exhibit continues through Saturday, April 27.
Spring Break Camp will be offered Monday to Friday, March 25 to 29. The theme, “European Vacation,” costs $380 for the entire tour of France, Greece, Germany and Scandinavia, Italy, and England. Children may also select one or more countries to “visit” for $90 per day. Create a puppet theater, explore mythology, make relief sculptures and comedia del’arte masks, or practice Morris dancing and Shakespearean language. Classes are for ages 5 to 14, 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.
West Windsor Arts Council, 952 Alexander Road, West Windsor. 609-716-1931 or www.westwindsorarts.org
