Princeton Makes, an artist cooperative headquartered in Princeton Shopping Center, hosts Rhythm and Hues, a musical and artistic collaborative event, in the shopping center’s courtyard on Thursday, May 29, at 6 p.m.
The event features Vidushi Pavana B. Achar, who is a noted player of the veena, an ancient stringed instrument from the Indian sub-continent. Accompanying her are Vignesh Prakash, a senior at the New Jersey Institute of Technology, and Sarvesh Premkumar, a senior at JP Stevens High School, both of whom play traditional Indian percussion instruments.
Inspired by the music they create, Princeton Makes’ artists paint during the performance. Attendees are invited to enjoy the collaboration or bring in their own art materials and join in the fun.
Vidushi Pavana B. Achar founded Kalaspandana in Manipal, India, where she has been mentoring music enthusiasts to play the veena for the past 30 years and has earned the musical title of Vidushi, a term for experts in Carnatic and Hindustani music. Pavana leads Vipanchi, a veena ensemble that has performed in prestigious venues all over India.
In addition to numerous solo veena performances, Vidushi Pavana’s musical accomplishments include thematic presentations as ensembles of over hundred veenas, and the revitalization of the classical tradition of playing the veena during Hindu rituals. Her contributions to popularizing the veena in communal venues and redefining the public’s perception of this classical Indian instrument have earned her numerous accolades, including a felicitation by the former President of India, Dr. APJ Abdul Kalam, several state awards, and numerous titles.
She notes: “I am a firm believer in music as an art form that transcends geographical barriers, binds communities, and enables broad cultural conversations.”
Princeton Makes is a cooperative comprised of 40 local artists who work across a range of artistic genres, including painting, drawing, stained glass, ceramics, sculpture, textiles, and jewelry. Customers will be able to support local artists by shopping for a wide variety of art, including large paintings, prints, custom-made greeting cards, stained glass lamps and window hangings, jewelry in a variety of designs and patterns, and more.
For more information: www.princetonmakes.com.
