13 Belizeans Head to Barbados for Caribbean Festival of Arts

Thirteen proud Belizeans are packing their talent and heading to Barbados this week, ready to shine on the regional stage. They’ll be representing Belize at the fifteenth edition of CARIFESTA, the Caribbean Festival of Arts, where music, fashion, and creativity take center stage. It’s a chance to connect, learn, and grow. From workshops to networking, this festival is all about building up the region’s creative economy. And Belize is right there in the mix, showing the Caribbean what we’ve got.

 

Kim Vasquez, Director, Institute of Creative Arts

“We’re focusing on fashion design, Handmade by Belize, which is an initiative that niche launched earlier this year in February actually, that speaks to the development of handcraft and handmade designs, and we’re also focusing or participating in the area of music. We’re taking with us Chico Ramos, a living legend. Chico will be performing of course there on one of the various lineups that they have at the fest at the Festa. But Chico, we also submitted for him for something that carifesta this year is having called icons of the Caribbean, where they are recognizing icons in different areas in film in visual arts. And he is being recognized in the area called born of the Rhythm. So he will be on a con on a concert where icons who have contributed to indigenous musical forms are performing. So that is something special that Chico is going to be doing. Chico put together a band special for Carifesta. His band is comprised of well known musicians. Some of them are new. Some of them are veterans of the stage and so he has a seven member band as well. And so we are really excited.”

 

Gilvano Swasey, Artist

“I am participating like as an elder and also as the curator for Handmade by Belize which is a project we started with about twenty-five different artists at Carifesta we have nine of them that are being represented. My main focus here is not just to showcase the art, but Carifesta affords you an opportunity where you liaison with other artists and artisans. But most importantly, we’re at a stage now where many things are happening in the world. We’re part of CARICOM of course, but I don’t think that we have taken that as an advantage.”