Gabbay Gallery adds restaurant

He’s considered the father of Belizean sculpture and his masterpiece the “Sleeping Giant” was even chosen as the watermark for our currency. But now the dust from the wood George Gabb has loved since he was old enough to hold a knife and chisel is affected his sinuses to such an extent he can now longer carve. Rather than be beaten, this man who also writes and paints has been inspired in a new direction. He has also expanded his gallery in Buttonwood Bay to include a restaurant. Gabb says the goal is to introduce more Belizeans to his art.

George Gabb, Artist

“When I tried painting, I saw I liked to sculpt, I want three dimensional form, I want to do that, so I said, you know what, I’ll try metal. So I start going around, looking at things, talking to things and conversing with them and saying “hey you could be this you know, because you remind me of this.” And I put them together and so it’s like that, you just go from one thing. If you are an artist and if you have that gift, you won’t stop, you will find something to express yourself through it’s as simple as that.

To use an old saying, if Mohammed don’t want to come to the mountain, the mountain will go to Mohammed. So I said, you know what I’ll do, I’ll try to see if I could have a restaurant, and by doing so people will come to eat. People have to eat, people don’t want to see art all the time, but they have to eat everyday. And if they come and eat, then they will be here, and I can take them around and show them and you never know, it will stimulate somebody, provoke somebody, excite somebody and then he or she will start going in the art world again too.”

The Gabbay Gallery and restaurant is located at 5945 Dolphin Drive and is also accessible from an entrance at mile two and a half on the Northern Highway. It is open for lunch and dinner.