Arts patrons celebrate opening of XI annual Paiz International Festival of Art & Culture

Dozens of civic leaders, arts aficionados and business executives helped launch the XI annual Paiz International Festival of Art and Culture at a reception Thursday night, Feb. 10, at the Casa Santo Domingo in La Antigua.

Guests mingled and listened a series of speakers at the hotel’s Galería Quiroa, where a retrospective of works by Guatemalan artist Carlos Mérida (1891-1984) was introduced.

The Paiz International Festival of Art and Culture, a nearly yearlong series of music, dance and art, opens Friday night, Feb. 11, with a reunion concert by the Guatemalan rock group Alux Nahual and Éditus, the Grammy-winning jazz group from Costa Rica. The concert is at 8 p.m. at Ermita de Santa Cruz in La Antigua.

Festival events continue at 3 p.m. Saturday Feb. 12, with the public opening of the Mérida exhibit at the Casa Santo Domingo. 

At 8 p.m. Saturday Feb. 12, Ermita de Santa Cruz will be rocked by power pianist Jorge Gomez and his Grammy-nominated Cuban timba group Tiempo Libre, accompanied by La Orquesta Sinfonica Juvenil.

The following weekend, Feb. 19-20, the hilarious international sensation Les Ballet Trockaderos de Montecarlo will perform at 8 p.m. at Ermita de la Santa Cruz. The festival’s opening month wraps up Feb. 26-27 with Ballet Hispánico, also at Ermita de la Santa Cruz.

Tickets to all performances are on sale at TodoTicket.com. For more information about Fundación Paiz, visit www.fundacionpaiz.org.gt.