National Collection on display as museum turns 16
The Museum of Belize commemorates its sixteenth anniversary with a special exhibit of pieces from the national collection of Belize. To mark the occasion, the Museum invited students for free guided tours to learn more about the artists and what the Museum offers. Andrea Polanco tells us more.
Andrea Polanco, Reporting
The Museum of Belize celebrates its sixteenth anniversary with Belize City students and a new exhibit. The primary and high school students toured the museum to learn more about Belize’s history. As a part of the tour, they also got a close look at a collection of over twenty-five pieces of different genres of artmade by local artists.Director of the Museum of Belize,Alexis Salazar, explains how the exhibit was put together.
Alexis Salazar, Director, Museum of Belize
Alexis Salazar
“We are opening new exhibit that features twenty-five plus Belizean art from the national collection of Belize. What it is, it’s kind of an educational campaign geared towards primary and high school children for them to learn about the different genres of art. It is different genres of art so you will go in and see different genres; impressionism, photography and so on. Different genres that are in our collection, so we took it and gave them an example of what an impressionist paintings are and then we show Belizean artists who are doing impressionist paintings.”
The collection from the national exhibit, which opened today, will remain on display until next week for guided school tours. These pieces include works of pioneers and established artists. Salazar explains that it is the Museum’s plan to do more to promote art.
Alexis Salazar
“We haven’t been displaying art as we should in the museum. So, what we decided to do is to create an educational campaign that has been going on for a series of months now but with lesser known artists. So, we did two call for artists and we have been displaying art in the museum so that people get used to it. Now we have more established artists, I would say, in the collection like Fernando Cruz, Gilvano Swasey – we have a new one from Gilvano that we just brought into the collection, Benjamin Nicholas, Pen Cayetano and a series of established artists who are known in Belize and some of them have their own art studios.”
This kind of initiative is to complement the art teachings in school.
Alexis Salazar
“It is the same thing that they are learning these things. Art is a part of the primary school curriculum, so we want to assist in that what we call the ‘hidden curriculum’ for these students in their overall development. So, hopefully we can generate an appreciation for art and maybe we have some young budding artists who can see this as a venue as hey I can do something in art and there is a venue for my creativity at the Museum through NICH.”
Andrea Polanco reporting for News Five.
