_{Handmade purse on display}

by Charles Gladden

BELIZE CITY, Thurs. Feb. 20, 2025

The National Institute of Culture and History (NICH), Institute of Creative Arts (ICA), in partnership with the Ministry of Culture, hosted the launch of a new art exhibit on Thursday, February 20, at the House of Culture in Belize City.

_{Handmade in Belize official ribbon cutting}

“Handmade by Belize” is the exhibit’s title, and it features the artistry and innovation of Belizean handmade creations.

“Belizean artisans are not only creators, they are storytellers, cultural keepers and innovators. Their hands that weave, crave, mold, and create are the same hands that carry forward generations of knowledge, skill, and stories,” said Kim Vasquez, NICH Director.

“Handmade by Belize is about recognition, development, and sustainability. We want to celebrate our artisans, our cultural entrepreneurs; but we also want them to thrive locally, regionally, and globally. Here is the first step,” she added.

The display features the work of 25 local artists, and their creations made of clay, paper, animal skins, calabash, leather, wire mesh, stone, butterfly wings, wire mesh, etc.

_{Hon. Francis Fonseca, Minister of Culture}

“The artist of this comes from all six districts and different communities,” said Minister of Culture, Hon. Francis Fonseca. “We have people from Maskall, Seine Bight, Aguacate, Succtoz, Gales Point, PG [Punta Gorda], we have people from San Antonio, Isabella Bank, Banana Bank, Teakettle, San Joaquin, Dangriga, Mile 63 on the George Price Highway. We have people from Belize City and Santa Elena. These artists are all good Belizeans using their hands, creativity, intellect, minds to build this beautiful country that we have,” he added.

“Handmade Belize is a development project that creates opportunities in the present while honoring the past. We are serious about making hands and imagination work together,” further mentioned Minister Fonseca.

The work of Emilio Perera, a well-known handbag designer from Belize City, was featured in the museum’s opening, with one of his bags being showcased at the event.

“It’s an honor to be recognized for the work that we do, and all of the artisans here have been passionate … being recognized today gives a platform for all of us as well … We try to tell a story … so, with our pieces, the more hands that go into the product, the better for us in that piece. We have five different artisans working on the bag. We have the leather, the jipejapa, and the wood; and the story of this bag is the wood, so we want to display the hardwoods of Belize in this collection. We have offered six different hardwoods, so the customer chooses which hardwood they want with the color of the bag, and that tells a story of the carpenter, who has 25 plus years of working with wood,” he said.

“Handmade by Belize” will hit the road and be displayed at the various Houses of Culture and museums nationwide – Corozal House of Culture (May), Banquitas Orange Walk (June), Benque House of Culture (August), Gullisi Garifuna Culture Museum (October), Seine Bight Welcome Center (November), and Punta Gorda Welcome Center (December).