Digital skills for regional artists

CQUniversity’s Regional Arts Services Network (RASN) has supported the digital growth of artists across Central Queensland. 

Partnering with Regional Business HQ, three workshops in Gladstone, Rockhampton and Biloela have been rolled out to help artists unlock the power of digital marketing to grow their creative businesses. 

Artists who participated in the workshop learned the fundamentals to build their brand, attract more buyers, and work smarter – not harder! 

Visual artist Tracey Hewitt from Theodore attended the workshop in Biloela.

“It had lots of useful information. I came away feeling inspired to move from my pretty hit-and-miss approach to a more cohesive and thoughtful one, and feel that the workshop gave me the foundations to build on," she said. 

“The segment about AI tools to make my business life easier was especially helpful, and I can see lots of potential for saving time with that technology.

“It was also great to discover the 1:1 service available (Digital Solutions Program), which I had no idea even existed.

"RASN offers so much value and community-building opportunities for its artists, and I really appreciate the opportunities they create for in-person gatherings and training – we don’t get too many of those, and the value goes far beyond the training itself.”

The workshops are part of the Australian Government’s Digital Solutions Program which provides support to small businesses to grow in the digital economy. 

“Regional artists and arts workers are essentially running small businesses, yet they often don’t have access to the same education and support as other industries,” CQUniversity’s Regional Arts Officer Katrina Elliott said.

“Helping them build sustainable careers means connecting them with programs tailored to their needs – like the Digital Solutions Program. Supporting the business side of their practice is just as important as the creative side, and that’s a big part of what we do at RASN. I look forward to seeing how our artists use these new learnings in their practice.”

The workshops were facilitated by David Wise, Business Advisor from Regional Business HQ. 

“I love to see people pursuing the challenge of turning their creativity into a business," Mr Wise said.

"Having the opportunity to help artists navigate building an online brand and streamlining some of their admin and marketings tasks has been exceptionally rewarding.”

The project has been supported by the Regional Arts Services Network (RASN) and The Digital Solutions Program. RASN is an initiative of the Queensland Government through Arts Queensland. CQUniversity is serving as the Central Queensland RASN Provider from 2022-2025. 

For more information on the Digital Solutions Program contact David Wise at davidw@businesshq.org.au

For more information on the Regional Arts Services Network contact Katrina Elliott at k.elliott@cqu.edu.au