Women in Art

I know it was over a month ago, but this is the event that has turned around my work, and life here in Belize, so I want to tell you a little about this art exhibit.
I had heard that there was an exhibit of women's art during March, which is celebrated as Women's Month in Belize. I met with Karen Vernon, the Director of the Bliss Theater, in early February and offered to help with the exhibit. She welcomed my assistance and asked me to contact the artists on her list, and find new female artists, to invite them to submit their work for the exhibit. She also asked me to obtain biographical information and pictures from the artists who were participating, and compile the information into a book that would be distributed on Opening Night. We ended up with thirty eight artists, who's ages ranged from 18 to "over 65", three of whom had never exhibited before. About a week before the show opened, Rachael Heusner, a long time resident of Belize who recently moved to Tobago, arrived to curate the exhibit. She and Karen had developed a great theme and design layout for the exhibit, and I had a great time helping Rachael set it up. As guests climbed the stairs to the gallery, they looked up to see clothes lines of women's clothing hanging above them - in pink, of course!
The Opening, or Launch, as it is called here, was a tremendous success, with about 200 people attending. The Opening Ceremony featured a wide range of female talent, including poetry, Garifuna drumming, dance and of course, the art. Rachael and her mother even made hundreds of cupcakes with icing in red, blue, green and yellow which we placed on a stand that held art palates painted the same colors as the cupcakes. A female DJ outside on the Palm Terrace, played female musician's music, while guests enjoyed light hors d'ouvres and rum punch. The picture at right is Rachael on the left and one of the new artists, Alessandra Berry, on the right. It was a lot of work, but I enjoyed it so much, that I wanted more! I decided to discuss it with my Counterpart at WIN and I'm delighted to say that last week, I started working for ICA, The Institute of Creative Arts, here at the Bliss Center for the Performing Arts.
I am still in the Peace Corps Business and Organizational Development group, so my job at The Institute of Creative Arts will be business related. I will be working on audience development for the theater, as well as at events, festivals and activities sponsored by ICA. I will also be working on the promotion of Belizean artists, trying to increase the sale of their work, both in the country and through exportation. I have only been here two weeks, but everyone has made me feel so welcome, and I am so excited about the work to be done here. I have already presented several ideas to Karen that she has encouraged me to proceed with and I am anxious to make them become reality!