Meet Valeen Bhat | Founder & CEO of Private Picassos

We had the good fortune of connecting with Valeen Bhat and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Valeen, what was your thought process behind starting your own business?
I started my company when I was 24 years old after I struggled to find an interesting and exciting position in 2006. After graduating with a master’s degree in Art & Design Education from Pratt Institute, the only jobs I found seemed to focus more on the parent’s expectations, rather than what excited their children. I wanted to create a program that started with children and their exploration of art, while also allowing myself the freedom to listen to my students and modify my projects and program around them. That core value is still central to Private Picassos and all of our classes, whether for children or adults. I encourage all of my Art Teachers to get to know their students and design every element of their lesson plan around them. I always want my staff and students to feel as though their ideas and opinions matter and are valued.

Alright, so for those in our community who might not be familiar with your business, can you tell us more?
Private Picassos is a virtual & in-person art studio, creating art experiences for kids and adults throughout the world. We bring our expertise in visual art education to our students in their homes, schools, camps, cultural venues and our Art Studio in Brooklyn, NY.

We believe in the intrinsic power of the arts and strive to help build confidence in our students.
In addition to refining our students’ fine motor skills, our program also improves their verbal and visual vocabularies and helps them discover new and exciting art techniques. All of our classes focus on exploration of materials and creative problem-solving rather than mimicry of art mechanics. We emphasize art instruction grounded in the intuitive elements of the fine arts. This philosophy provides our students with a better appreciation of their own thoughts and abilities.

We offer the following products and services:
– In-person art classes for kids & adults
– Virtual art classes for kids & adults
– Art Kits for kids & adults
– Art Making at our Brooklyn, NY Art Studio
– Birthday Parties and special events
– School & business partnerships

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
We would definitely start by picking up kolaches and coffee from Brooklyn Kolache Company (https://www.brooklynkolache.com/) around the corner from our home and have breakfast out on our terrace.

We’d then walk around Brooklyn to visit some of my favorite shops, including St. Hrouda (https://www.sthrouda.com/), Article & (https://articleand.com/) and Greenlight Books (https://www.greenlightbookstore.com/). Hihi Room (https://www.hihiroom.com) is the perfect spot for lunch, followed by a walk down Atlantic Avenue and through Ft. Greene Park.

Afternoon naps are a must in my book, followed by snacks and wine back out on our terrace (clearly my husband and I love having outdoor space!)

For dinner, we’d swing by 1 or 8 in Ft Greene for amazing sushi, noodles and cocktails.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
My mom! She has worked her whole life as a visual artist and has always been a creative inspiration for me. I’ve also tried to model my schedule, especially when it comes to motherhood, around what she showed us in my childhood. She organized her day made time to spend time with my sister and I before and after school, and spent evenings in her studio making art.

While I know from experience that its not easy and its definitely not balanced (!) all the time, this showed me how to stay true to what I want for my own career and business, but also learn to make my own hours and focus on what is in front me at any given moment.

x

Website: https://www.privatepicassos.com/

Instagram: @privatepicassos

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/valeen-bhat-784557a/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/PrivatePicassos/