Mother’s Day may be over, but one mother and son duo is giving Belizeans another reason to celebrate. As we speak, the Belisle Art Gallery at the Bliss Center for Performing Arts is unveiling “Moments”—a heartfelt art exhibition by celebrated Belizean artist Rachel Heusner and her son, Dean Martin. This marks their second joint showcase, and it’s packed with emotion and creativity. The exhibit features thirty original pieces that beautifully capture fleeting moments of the Belizean experience—snapshots of daily life, culture, and memory, frozen in time through art. News Five’s Britney Gordon got a sneak peek this morning and spoke with the artists about the inspiration behind their work.
A woman in a bright red sunhat and a colorful skirt buys fruit at the market—an ordinary scene most of us pass by without a second thought. But in the hands of Belizean artist Rachel Heusner and her son, Dean Martin, that fleeting moment becomes something extraordinary. Now hanging on the walls of the Bliss Center for Performing Arts, this painting is just one of thirty pieces in their joint exhibit, “Moments.” The collection transforms everyday Belizean life into vibrant works of art, inviting viewers to pause and appreciate the beauty in the seemingly mundane. Through bold colors and thoughtful brushstrokes, Heusner and Martin remind us that even the simplest moments are worth celebrating.
Rachael Heusner, Belizean Artist
“Basically, we do a lot of historical paintings between myself my son. So we have been working on a few pieces over the past year, you would say, and then coming towards the end, I came up with a theme “Moments” because when you paint,, you basically capture a moment in time. So it’s, you know, like every snippet is a moment.”
Britney Gordon
“So what are some of the moments that we can see here today? Where did you draw your inspiration from?”
“From life. From life, from, you know, walking down Albert Street to a lady baking some Johnny Cakes or the people just walking, just doing life. You know, life happens every second.”
Rachael Heusner
“I did this based on, Hofius was closing down after so many years, and there’s a lot of buildings on Albert Street. William Quan, Brodie’s, Remax not there anymore. Odette’s. I stopped in by Sikaffy the other day and the history that all of these, they’re not just buildings. There’s so much stories and memories that resonates with people here and especially those that live abroad. They miss Belize. People live abroad, but they love their Belize.”
Rachael Heusner
“He works along with me because they have a very keen and sharp eye for detail. So sometimes he might see something that’s off or he might be want, the perspective is a little bit off, the colors are not working right. So we work a little bit together on that. And in doing that he gets to learn a little bit about the history of Belize.”
“So the exhibit opens this evening at six p.m. here at the Bliss. It’s a free event. And like I was telling you guys earlier, I don’t feel people should have to pay to look at art. You know, I guess museums, they charge you to go in because they need to maintain the place, but come and enjoy the art. Just like how you enjoy music, you enjoy poetry, you know, it’s, it’s an aesthetic that animals don’t have. We could enjoy stuff like that. Yeah. So come, if you wanna take something home, then there’s a little fee to it.”
The public is warmly invited to attend and experience this unique blend of family, culture, and creativity. The exhibit will remain at the Bliss until Friday, May sixteenth. Britney Gordon for News Five.