Service-Learning Course Meets Unconventional Visual Art Entrepreneurs

Abstract

This paper investigates how students in a service-learning course “Entrepreneurial Marketing in Practice” organized in one of the higher institutions in Hong Kong helping young visual art entrepreneurs in the community to start up their own business. In-depth interviews were conducted with young entrepreneurs in 2024. A lack of sources of income, self-determination, self-center and limited business profile were found to be young visual art entrepreneurs’ characteristics. A collaboration model with stakeholders like non-government organization (NGO), young entrepreneurs, educational institutions with university students are put in the Stimulus-Organism-Response (SOR) model. Usually those underserved young artists have a clear mind set but lack of start-up capital and expert support. “Trial and error laboratory” project by a non-governmental organization assists the artists by providing a co-working space and peer support. Marketing students enrolled in serving learning course offers some marketing suggestions and works for entrepreneurs in the implementation process of the marketing promotion. As a result, the short-term goals of visual art entrepreneurs, including raising awareness of their artwork could be achieved with the help from a non-governmental organization and students in the Service-Learning courses.