MYTHIC SPIRITS OF BELIZE MOVE A PAIR OF LOCAL ARTISTS TO PAINT.

Byline: Lisa M. Sodders Staff Writer

As children, Griselda Ramirez and Dismas Lizarraga grew up hearing fantastic folk tales in their native Belize - a tiny Central American nation wedged between Guatemala, Mexico and the Caribbean.

As adults, the two Mission College graduates have turned childhood memories of those legends into a series of paintings, which they've been asked to exhibit in the country in January.

Both artists were born in Belize's northern district Corozal, but they didn't meet until 1999, when they were in the same art class at Mission College in Sylmar. Since then, they have been romantic and professional partners, frequently finishing each other's sentences.

``It's kind of a dream that I haven't dreamt yet,'' Lizarraga, 27, said of showing his art back in Belize. ``I've always wanted to do art ... and have people actually recognize the characters. It's exciting.''

The North Hollywood resident remembers older family members warning him about Tata Duende - an old forest gnome with backward feet and no thumbs.

``He's a spirit who protects the forest,'' Lizarraga explained. ``We were told to only hunt what you need to eat, because if you over-hunt, he'll be angry.''

Never show Tata Duende your thumbs or he'll twist them off, Lizarraga said. But if you get on Tata Duende's good side, he'll reward you by teaching you how to play guitar.

Ramirez, 23, of Calabasas said her family has a personal tale about one spirit who, as the story goes, gave her great-uncle a scare back in the 1940s, when he was in his 30s. The uncle was at a dance when the family believes he was swept away by Xtabai, an evil spirit that takes the form of a beautiful woman to lure men to their doom.

``They found him in a tree, crying. He had slashes on his back and he said Xtabai was going to come back for him and kill him,'' she said.

Formerly British Honduras, Belize has a diverse population of 250,000 Afro-Caribbeans, Hispanics, Creoles, mestizos, Mayans and others. More than half of its 8,900 square miles is covered by rain forest.

While Belize's official language is English - having gained its independence from England in 1981 - Spanish is spoken in the northern region, which borders Mexico. It was there that Ramirez and Lizarraga grew up hearing legends influenced by Mayans, whose traditions date back more than 2,000 years, and European folk tales brought by colonizers.

The artists believe the legends were used to protect children from the dangers lurking in the abundant forests - and, in the case of Xtabai, to keep husbands from drinking and carousing, Ramirez added.

Barbara Kerwin, studio arts chairwoman at Mission College, teaches painting and drawing. She said the pair, known professionally as GrissyG and Dismas, became interested in the legends while doing research for one of her painting classes.

``Both of them have the talent that no teacher can give to them,'' Kerwin said. ``They'll stay up all night long. They're very dedicated to learning everything they can.''

Yasser Musa, president of Belize's National Institute of Culture and History, met the artists on their research trip and invited them to exhibit their work in six regions of the country. Later, they hope to exhibit the work in Los Angeles and to write a book about the legends.

Five of the pair's 10 works to be exhibited in Belize feature female spirits - Xtabai, Seareyna, Sisimita, Llorona and Sucia - as rendered by Ramirez. The remaining five are male - Tata Duende, Negro de Agua, Sisimito, Cadejo and Tabai - interpreted by Dismas.

Lisa M. Sodders, [phone]

lisa.sodders(at)dailynews.com

-- To view their work, go to their Web site at www.grisdismation.com

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Photo:

(1) Dismas Lizarraga, standing, and Griselda Ramirez present some of their paintings of mythical figures. Their work will be exhibited in Belize in January.

John McCoy/Staff Photographer