Artists challenged to find creativity

Belizean talent has never been in short supply, but according to the experts creativity is usually a challenge. With that in mind, over the next two months local artists are being asked to step outside the box and come up with a photograph, painting, sculpture, video … just about anything that will excite the judges of a competition entitled, Wanted: Creativity. According to organiser Gilvano Swasey, the idea is to get people to think about what is really art.

Gilvano Swasey, Organiser
“This is the whole concept behind creativity. We want people to do it for once, not just to come and look at it, but to make it.”

Janelle Chanona
“So are you expecting anything then to come walking through the door?”

Gilvano Swasey
“I’m expecting anything and I want anything. Creativity is close to insanity, it’s what a kid would do and you’d think it was wrong because they would draw two circles and a stick and they say that’s a person and you say, no, no, a person has these other parts. And then when the crazy man pulls out a piece of cardboard and draws on it you say no, no, you have to draw on canvas. It’s taking what is very obvious and presenting it back to you in a sexy way.”

“In all the mediums, photography, painting, sculpting. A lot of people seh, how, how? I say you can also participate in all of them and you can win all of them if you are good. And like I tell people, do a painting, take a picture of it, sculpt off that picture if you want to get crazy and just make other things. But like I said, the main thing is just to give people the freedom to create.”

All entries will be judged by a panel of experts and displayed at the Image Factory Art Gallery. Winners of individual categories will also be awarded five hundred dollars in cash. Submissions are due on August twenty-fourth. For more information about the competition, please contact Gilvano Swasey at 625-1625.