The Sunday News
Ngqwele Dube, Sunday News Correspondent
ARTISTES have called on Government to give the sector a lift through partly funding the industry if it is going to make any success.
In presentations made by artistes during a dialogue meeting with the Minister of Sports, Arts and Culture, Makhosini Hlongwane at the National Art Gallery in Bulawayo on Friday, the common thread from the different sectors was lack of funding from central and local Government.
The artistes indicated Government funding was central to the success of the arts industry as seen in other countries. Addressing artistes after they had raised their concerns, Hlongwane said continued engagement between Government and artistes is certain to see positive changes being implemented in the sector as it is artistes who will shape policy.
He said dialogue with artistes will determine Government policy on the arts as the authorities would tap into the thinking of arts practitioners.
“The thinking of artistes will shape arts policies as artistes tell us the issues they want us to deal with and how they want them addressed. While I know there has been little time in terms of presenting all the issues here we are going to engage more afterwards through the principal director, Paul Damasane,” he said.
Hlongwane said he had already asked Rev Damasane to start working on a programme of artistes’ development that would encompass entrepreneurial training for artistes.
He said talent only might not be enough to enable an artiste to earn well from their work as other processes such as marketing and negotiation came into play in determining the final income an artiste will make.
Hlongwane said the envisaged training will focus on areas such as selling which are not usually part of the artiste training curricula.
Visual artist, Tafadzwa Gwetai bemoaned the lack of appreciation of visual art at Government level saying this impacted how ordinary Zimbabweans viewed art.
He said it was critical for Government buildings to be draped in local art and murals while public places can also be adorned with local sculpture to improve their aesthetic value, a proposal that received the nod from Hlongwane.
The artiste also decried the cumbersome process involved in bringing in artistes from outside the country with Raisedon Baya saying they have to deal with Zimra, immigration, Censorship Board and National Arts Council, all of whom demand payment.
He revealed costs that could have amounted to $2 000 forced Intwasa Arts Festival KoBulawayo to change terms of the performance of invited artistes to an exchange programme to avoid paying duty although it meant the shows involving those artistes did not charge entrance fees.
Hlongwane agreed to present to Cabinet proposals to remove duty on instruments and tools used by artistes in their line of work although he said strict controls will be put into place to ensure the facility is not abused.
Nkululeko Nkala and Gwetai decried the imposition of tariffs on music instruments and tools for making sculptures as they were finding it hard to acquire some of the tools because of the costs.
Artistes from different genres filled the Anglo-American Gallery as they sought audience with Hlongwane who recently had the Arts and Culture portfolio added to his Sports ministry.
Arts practitioners have long accused Government of neglect with little attention being given to the sector as it previously bundled with the Education portfolio that inevitably got all the attention from the ministers responsible.
