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Golu Exhibit: Kolam Workshop
September 28 @ 12:30 pm - 2:00 pm
VALA Eastside, Paint A Style Art School, Devika Malhotra, and Vidya Mohan present a Golu Exhibit: Celebrating Navarathri through storytelling and art! The festivities continue this weekend.
Exhibit Dates: September 21-October 16, 2025
Open Hours: Saturday/Sunday, 11 am to 2 pm
Kolam Workshop: Sunday, Sept. 28, 12:30 pm to 2 pm
Location: VALA Art Center, 8020 161st Ave NE, #104, Redmond, WA 98052
Kolam, a traditional South Indian floor art practiced mainly by women in Tamil Nadu, is created with rice flour, chalk, or rock powder at dawn in front of homes, temples, and shops; the meditative designs—ranging from simple dots and lines to intricate geometric patterns—are unique yet always rooted in symmetry and balance.
Join us for a free workshop on making these unique and intricate designs! Participants can take home a drawing to place in their own home.
About Navarathri:
Navarathri is a beloved season for Indian Americans to showcase talents in music, painting, cooking, and more. Rooted in honoring the goddesses of wealth, learning, and power, homes in Southern India display Golu—doll arrangements that invite storytelling and artful interaction. Installations feature clay or paper mâché dolls and traditional paintings, drawing visitors of all ages into the festival’s vibrancy. As part of this celebration, we will present a story from Visnusarma’s “Panchatantra”, a classic collection of 84 tales across five sections. These timeless fables share practical wisdom that continues to resonate across cultures and generations.
About VALA Eastside:
Venues for Artists in the Local Area (VALA Eastside) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit arts organization based in Redmond, WA, committed to connecting artists to artists, artists to the community, and the community to art. More info: https://www.facebook.com/ValaEastside
About Paint A Style:
Devika Kapoor is a renowned artist, designer and teacher. She is versatile artist teaching students from all ages in various media. Devika had been teaching arts for last 10 years in Redmond, WA She gained rich experience in early childhood development in her formative years of career, which were complimented by customer relations experience while she managed large retail operations. These experiences paved way for her to start her own art school, Paint a Style in 2014. This was a stepping stone in her success in this field. More info: https://paintastyle.com
About Vidya Mohan:
Vidya Mohan is a software engineer, artist, and blogger whose best expression is storytelling with paints and words. Having worked for almost two decades in Microsoft and Amazon, she left to discover the meditative powers of paintbrush, paints and writing. She found her home in Indian deity art that are commonly found in temples, tapestry and traditional weaves. You can read about her journeys, both inward and outward on: https://antarprayanam.wordpress.com/.
