HARARE - Harare International Festival of the Arts (Hifa) has called on artists to apply to participate in the 2013 edition.

Hifa has come under fire from different artists who accused them of targeting a selected few.

Next year’s edition will run from April 30 to May 5 and the application deadline is January 31, 2013. Hifa head of Media and Community Liaison, Tafadzwa Simba said they are open to all.

“Hifa has been using application forms for the last eight years notwithstanding the fact that before and after 2004.

“This is precisely why there is a committee of artistic consultants who interact with artists and look after programming details in each of Hifa’s programming genres namely: craft and applied art, spoken word, jazz and contemporary music, classical music, dance, theatre and fine art,” he said.

Simba said they have exhausted most channels of communication conveying the message.

“Hifa has communicated with artists using various channels including Hifa’s electronic platforms, the media, as well as Arts institutions such as the Zimbabwe College of Music, National Gallery of Zimbabwe, Dance Trust of Zimbabwe as well as the National Arts Council of Zimbabwe. All these Arts institutions have been Hifa’s traditional collection points for those requiring hard copy application forms, with the National Arts Council being availed copies for its provincial offices as well.”

Hifa’s main guiding principles are high artistic integrity, novelty and collaboration.

“There are three avenues through which performances get into the Hifa programme. One is when an artist or their manager applies to the festival, two as part of a presentation, for instance the traditional Opening Show — an act is approached by one of HIFA’s artistic consultants to present a bespoke act.

“The third one is when an embassy applies to bring a particular act to Hifa. Each of these avenues are used for and by both local and visiting acts,” said Simba.

Hifa is a six day annual festival and workshop programme that showcases local, regional and international arts and culture in a comprehensive festival programme.

It has come to be seen as an important symbol of something positive about Zimbabwe, unifying socially and culturally disparate groups of Zimbabweans at a time of ideological conflict and political uncertainty bringing huge audiences together to celebrate something positive — the healing and constructive capacity of the arts.