Championing Caribbean Culture, Music and Creative Leadership
Mary-Venetia Genis is the founder and Artistic Director of CultureMix Arts, a Black-led arts organisation specialising in carnival arts, music education, performance, talent development and professional training.
A first-generation Black British woman of Trinidadian heritage, Mary was educated at The Holt County Grammar School for Girls before studying Art and Fashion at Berkshire College of Art and Design. She began her career as a freelance designer in fashion, theatre and carnival costume, while also working as a touring musician and performance artist.
Her early creative practice developed into a wider commitment to education and community engagement. Mary began delivering music and costume-making workshops and later advised on capital and carnival grant applications for the Arts Council of England.
In 1997, she joined Reading Borough Council as its first arts officer specialising in cultural diversity. In this pioneering role, she developed initiatives including the free Black arts magazine Boom and the Talic record label. She later became the magazine’s independent producer and editor while presenting The Sonic Boom Radio Show.
Mary went on to become the first Arts Officer for Cultural Diversity at Southern Arts, now Arts Council England South East. She left the organisation in 2003 to concentrate full-time on CultureMix Arts and her vision of establishing a pioneering centre for carnival arts, music and cultural development.
Today, Mary leads CultureMix Arts from the CultureMix Arts & Music Centre in Reading, Berkshire. The centre is the established home of the award-winning Reading All Steel Percussion Orchestra, widely known as RASPO Steel Orchestra, where Mary supports the artistic and professional development of young musicians and emerging creative leaders.
Throughout her career, Mary has worked extensively in audience development, cultural programming and public events. As a freelance consultant to Reading Borough Council, she initiated the Urban World programme and coordinated the One World Stage at WOMAD Reading for seven years, from 1997 to 2003.
She has also designed and delivered training in board development, arts funding, cultural diversity, carnival arts and the history of Black music. Organisations she has worked with include the Independent Theatre Council, the University of Reading and Creative Partnerships. She has also been a guest lecturer in arts business and world music at Reading College.
As a former Vice President and member of the Cultural Diversity Advisory Group to the Media, Mary contributed a chapter to ITV’s publication The Guide to Cultural Diversity. She also served for three years on the BBC Local Advisory Council.
Mary became a trustee of Jelly in 2002 and received a BBC Radio Berkshire Community Award in 2006 for her services to the Black community. An Arts Council Artist Fellowship Award subsequently enabled her to study carnival arts and music in Brazil.
In 2008, Mary was awarded a prestigious Clore Fellowship through the Clore Leadership Programme. As part of the fellowship, she completed a three-month secondment with the London Organising Committee of the Olympic and Paralympic Games at Canary Wharf, working as UK Cultural Olympiad Launch Coordinator. She also undertook research at King’s College London.
The following year, she was nominated for and attended the Windsor Leadership Programme at Windsor Castle.
Mary’s previous non-executive and advisory roles include serving as a board member of South Hill Park Arts Centre and Readipop, working as a school governor and supporting young entrepreneurs as a Business Ambassador for Central Berkshire Education Business Partnership.
As a member of the Reading 2012 Partnership Group, she helped organise local events connected to the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games. She also contributed to the Outdoor Leadership Group South East, an Arts Council England-funded programme supporting established and emerging artists, producers and programmers working in the public realm.
In 2013, the Reading Post named Mary as one of the ten most influential women in the cultural life of Reading. That same year, she joined the board of Carnival Village Trust, the organisation behind two of West London’s most important Black arts and carnival venues: The Tabernacle and the Yaa Centre.
Mary was shortlisted in the Performer category of the Sue Ryder Women of Achievement Awards and was honoured at the Black Women of Achievement gala alongside leading figures from the arts, publishing, politics and public life.
In 2017, Mary received the British Association of Steelbands Hall of Fame Lifetime Achievement Award. The association’s highest accolade recognised her sustained national and international contribution to steel pan, her commitment to promoting the instrument and her work inspiring and leading generations of musicians.
CultureMix Arts became an Arts Council England National Portfolio Organisation in 2018. Through the organisation, Mary continues to realise her long-standing vision for a thriving Black-led cultural institution that celebrates Caribbean music, heritage and creativity while creating opportunities for young people, artists and communities.
Her career reflects a lifelong commitment to artistic excellence, cultural representation and the transformative power of music and carnival arts.