The sixth edition, which has been dubbed ‘Spirit Robot’ will have artists manipulate reality through their imaginations.
Although the event has come to be recognised as a strong platform that promotes the culture of the country through creativity, producers of the event say that they have not received support from government institutions like the Ministry of Tourism, Culture and Creative Arts among others.
Speaking to Citi Showbiz, co-director of Accra [dot] ALT, producers of Chale Wote, Mantse Aryeequaye, said that after years of trying to get some key institutions on board, their efforts still remain fruitless.
He says that although the institutions did not understand their concept, patronage has improved over the years, and they have learnt to be self dependent.
“When we started Chale Wote, every year we sent letters and proposals to the Ministry of Tourism, Culture and Creative Arts and we never heard anything from them. If you send things to someone for four years and they ignore you it means they are not interested.
I think they [just don’t understand our craft] and it’s fine; that’s why it is what it is. [But] Art is not one of those things that has to wait for sponsorship before it happens. We’ve adopted a DIY culture and Chale Wote, itself, is run on the resources, innovation and commitment of fellow artists.”
The co-director however, commended the Accra Metropolitan Assembly for its immense support over the years.
“The A.M.A has been really helpful and significant in the growth of the festival. That’s one state institution that has been very supportive. They allow us to block a major road, every year, for two days. They help us liaise with the Ghana Police Service and local James Town security intelligence. We are really grateful to the A.M.A and we hope that their involvement with Chale Wote will encourage other key government institutions.”
Every year, over two hundred Ghanaian and International artists hit the streets of James Town in Accra, to make strong socio-cultural, political and socio-economic statements, through street painting, photo exhibition, live street performances, extreme sports, African film shows, street boxing, a fashion parade, Poetry, Indie-fusion music concerts and many other activities
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