English A

SBA Portfolio

Topic: The Art Industry in Belize

Sub Topic: How citizens of Belize View and appreciate Art

Class: 3A

Year of Examination: 2024

Submitted by: Ella Heusner

Submitted to: Mrs. Tanya Flowers-Gillett

School Name: Saint Catherine Academy

School Code: 040013

Candidate Number: 0400131293

Territory: Belize

Caribbean Examination Council

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 Table of content

Topic Page number

Plan of Investigation ..............................................……………………………….……3

Source 1 ………………………………………………………………………….…….4

Source 2…………………………………………………………………………….…..5

Source 3………………………………………………………………………….……..6

Reflection #1 ...............................................................………………………….……..7

Reflection #2……………………………………………………………………….…...8

Reflection #3…………………………………………………………………….……...9

Plan for Oral Presentation……………………………………………………………...10

Written report…………………………………………………………………………..11/12

References……………………………………………………………….……………..13

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 Plan of Investigation

The compelling theme of my SBA is “The Art Industry in Belize”; moreover, my

focus will be on “How Citizens of Belize View and Appreciate Art”. My desire to select this

topic was influenced by my bewilderment at the lack of appreciation for the unique artwork

in Belize. As a student of English, I expect to improve my comprehension skills from reading

articles on the topic, my cognition skills through acquiring and understanding information,

and my analytical skills to properly analyse data which will be heavily beneficial when

researching. Furthermore, all of these skills will assist me in writing and properly developing

my SBA coherently. I will obtain my video data from a recorded interview on Youtube, as

well as a written article found on Google. I will use my analytical, along with my assessment

skills to effectively come to an accurate conclusion after thoroughly analysing my data.

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 Source 1

Video, Interview

Marketing Art in Belize

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 Source 2

Video, Interview

Belizean Art

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 Source 3

Print, Article

Art in Belize

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 Reflection 1

Belizeans are rarely captivated by local art. The first artefact examined was a video,

“Marketing Art in Belize”. This video gave insight on the amount of locals who purchased

art, compared to tourists, confirming my suspicion that very few Belizeans purchase local art.

Second, I acquired a video artefact, “Belizean Arts”. This video speaks of the effort

local artists have exercised. It saddened me, for these artists work tirelessly creating artwork

inspired by the beauty/culture of Belize, yet I have learned through research that few locals

support them.

Finally, an article, “Art in Belize”. This tells of the variety of unique artwork Belize

has to offer, as well as highlights the artist behind the masterpiece. This final artefact left me

in awe of the artists and motivated me to discover why Belizeans don’t seem to be impressed

by local art. To conclude, Belize has a wide variety of art that has yet to be wholly

appreciated.

Reflection ll

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 Language use is constantly utilised to enhance media. This first artefact, (marketing

art in Belize) uses facts and statistics to explain the process of purchasing artwork in Belize.

It is stated that “90% of customers are tourists” and thus provides credible insight to the

process of shipping art abroad.

The quotation “only a few people would visit art galleries in the early days, but now

the art scene has grown” from the video, (Belizean Arts), utilises facts to provide a

background of the arts industry before it was popularised. Further explaining the growth of

the industry.

The final artefact is an article by Cristina Reyna which makes use of imagery to

illustrate the variety of artwork found in belize, as well as the different artists producing these

works. To conclude, each artefact provides insight on the perception of artwork in Belize.

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 Reflection lll

Through embarking on the journey of my SBA I gained a great understanding of my

topic. I acquired knowledge on the inner workings of the Belizean arts industry, as well as the

passion of our local artists which has allowed me to fully appreciate artwork.

Furthermore, I have developed my cognition and writing skills. As I conducted

research, cognition was necessary to effectively analyse my artefacts; Moreover, once I

gathered the necessary information I applied my writing skills to coherently compile the data.

Finally, I developed communication and listening skills in the group environment.

Communication became an essential skill in group work for the discussion of different ideas

is paramount in coming to a unanimous decision. Listening was also essential as you must

consider everyone’s opinion equally and be able to understand their views. To conclude, my

research has been an enlightening experience which has given me an appreciation for this

niche industry in Belize.

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 Plan for Oral Presentation

I chose to express my topic through a poem for my oral presentation. Two of my

literary inspirations were Ella Wheeler Wilcox's "Art and Heart," which demonstrates how art

can convey various emotions, and Dylan Thomas' "In My Craft or Sullen Art," which

describes a poet who writes solely for the sake of their craft. This reminded me of some of

the local artists in Belize. Rhyme and imagery were the most common languages used in my

poem. Rhyme was used to create unity and structure, making the poem more memorable.

Imagery, on the other hand, was used to vividly depict Belize's natural beauty. The poem

discusses the under-appreciation of art in Belize. Though there is a diverse and talented

artistic community, most of the art goes unnoticed because the majority of art consumers are

tourists. The poem also explores the beauty and culture of Belize, which could inspire and

enhance the potential of artists and their work.

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 Written Report

As a group, we decided on the topic "Artwork in Belize." Under this topic, each

member received a subtopic which were "Tourist Interest on Art in Belize", "How Citizens of

Belize View and Appreciate Art", "Why Upper Class Citizens Gravitate Towards Art in

Belize", and "The Lifestyle of a Local Belizean Artist".

We met as a group to collectively assess and analyse our stimuli to decide which

pieces gave the most reliable information on our topic. The first one is a video titled

"Belizean Art", then an article "How street Art Promotes Culture and Heritage in Belize" and

lastly the article entitled "Belizean Art: A True Reflection of Cultures". We looked at the

language use of each of our artefacts to decide. They provided additional evidence, and they

were all published by local sources.

The author of our first stimuli, sourced from YouTube, utilises facts to provide

background on the Belizean art industry, as well as displaying its development to viewers.

The author of our second stimuli also uses facts to get the attention of readers. Facts are

useful to the group as they gain knowledge on their topic and can make an informed opinion

on the information provided. Finally, an article from the internet uses imagery to capture the

interest of readers and create a vivid mental picture.

As a group we were left with the question of why local citizens seem unimpressed by

local art even though it represents us as a people and culture. After researching thoroughly we

have come to the conclusion that art tends to be expensive for many Belizean citizens.

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However, the lack of appreciation perhaps also stems from the lack of knowledge and interest

on the subject.

While compiling the data for our SBA, we found it difficult to obtain reliable

information that relates to Artwork in Belize. Furthermore, we learnt that artwork in Belize

has grown; however it is not due to the support of Belizean citizens. In conclusion, the

outcome of our research is that tourists and wealthy citizens of Belize are the main consumers

of Belize art. Lastly, artists in Belize find their occupation difficult due to the lack of

appreciation from citizens. Moving forward, we hope to gain recognition for artists in Belize.

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 References

Source 1: APA Reference: Iraqiwar. (2015, June 23). Marketing art in Belize. YouTube. Retrieved
March 11, 2023, from

https://files.fm/f/8nv4gkrf7

Source 2: APA Reference: Iraqiwar. (2017, February 13). Belizean Arts. YouTube. Retrieved March 11, 2023, from

https://files.fm/f/e437kbe2p

Source 3: APA Reference: Reyna, C. (2021, July 13). Art in Belize . Caribbean Culture and Lifestyle. Retrieved
March 11, 2023, from

https://caribbeanlifestyle.com/art-in-belize/

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