| Art Gallery of Ontario offers yoga | | Print | |
| Written by Kelly Schweitzer | ||
| Friday, 20 January 2012 13:46 | ||
It may be an unconventional setting for yoga, but given its popularity, the Art Gallery of Ontario (AGO) will be continuing their program until the end of May, sources told the Toronto Star. It was slated to last three months, but the yoga program at the AGO - created by artist-in-residence Paul Butler - has been successfully held in the Henry Moore gallery of the AGO, where participants have been moving in unison among the sculptures, since the end of last year. According to the Star, the wide-open spaces in the AGO, are an ideal environment for not only yoga enthusiasts, but also the gallery’s staff, who arrive to work early for classes. “There are all these big empty halls in the city that should be used. Yoga is so simple, so accessible. It’s just like an add-on to your life,” said Grace Dubery to the Star. Dubery, yoga instructor at the AGO, explained to the Star that the connection between yoga and art forces us to examine our bodies and movements, especially in relation to sculpture. “It is something magical to consider the body in relation to sculpture,” AGO organizer Ann Marie Peña said to the Star. Pino Rizzi, group exercise director and yoga instructor at the Wynn Fitness Club in Mississauga, Ont., told thedailyplanet.com that the whole idea of yoga is that mind, body and spirit connect. Rizzi said that often when someone comes into yoga just looking for a workout, they may not necessarily be there for the spiritual aspect, but they usually see that side of it begin to filter in to their life, as yoga is rooted in spirituality. “It’s not just that you get a stronger body, a sculpted body, but it really changes the way you see the world – your mindset, finding calm, finding peace, finding balance and a spiritual connection. ...It really is transformative,” said Rizzi. Classes are $10 per session and start before 8 a.m. Add this page to your favorite Social Bookmarking websites |
