ICA Spotlights Female Talent During Women’s Month

March is Women’s Month, but it’s also a moment for Belizean women to showcase their power through art. And tonight, the Bliss Center for the Performing Arts turns its spotlight on them, opening the “Women in Art” exhibit. The show brings together bold, imaginative pieces from female creatives across the country, each one offering a glimpse into the stories, struggles, and triumphs that shape their work. News Five takes you inside the gallery for a first look at the women who are redefining Belize’s artistic landscape.

 

Shane Williams, Reporting…

Paintings, poetry and crafts from some of the most talented Belizean women now line the gallery walls at the Institute of Creative Arts for the 2026 Women in Art exhibit. The Institute of Creative Arts is using Women’s Month to spotlight female talent, rolling out an exhibit that celebrates women artists nationwide. Director Kim Vasquez says the goal is to inspire women and girls while honoring the creative voices shaping Belize’s art scene.

 

Kim Vasquez, Director, Institute of Creative Arts

“The exhibit opens tonight here at the Bliss Center at seven p.m. Entrance is free. We have a full program of entertainment. We have a guest speaker that’s an annual feature as well. And this year’s guest speaker is poet Kyla Gentle. She recently published her second book of poetry and so she’s our guest speaker. We also have performances, entertainment on the veranda. Entrance is free and that’s tonight to open the exhibit. And the exhibit will run throughout the month of March. And again, this is a way for us to create, to highlight the work of women artists within Women’s Month and this is our way as well as to recognize their contributions and also to signify that we need to create we need to give support to women in the arts.”

 

Over the years the exhibition has featured dozens of artists working in multiple mediums, with themes often exploring identity, empowerment and social change through the lens of women’s experiences.  This year’s collection continues that tradition, with the curator guiding viewers through a narrative conveyed in each piece.

 

Saidy Moore, Curator, Women In Arts

“The overriding theme is the theme of this year, which is “Balance The Scales”. It’s finding that equity, that seat at the table that women are always striving to have not only in their homes, but in their professional careers, balancing their lives, but also ensuring that they’re respected in whatever organization, wherever they are. So that’s the overriding team. But again, it’s also ties into the transformation concept that we are working with. If you go wrong, you’ll also see there are literary submissions so those submissions also reflect that same transformation.”

 

The Women in Art exhibit welcomes the public at the Bliss Center for the Performing Arts throughout Women’s Month, giving Belizeans a chance to experience the creativity and perspectives of women artists from across the country. Shane Williams for News Five.

 

Attention readers: This online newscast is a direct transcript of our evening television broadcast. When speakers use Kriol, we have carefully rendered their words using a standard spelling system.

 

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