Art2Business - key entrepreneur and digital skills for future artist

Our premise is that young artists need to receive education for business skills (entrepreneurship, law, economics, financial management, digital skills, marketing, communication, social network co...

We need to cooperate to improve our artists' influence, impact, and success on the labor market. We also need to share experiences, exchange good practices, and cooperate to transfer our work to higher-level expanding and internationalizing educational activities of institutions and participants. In cooperation with our partners, we produced an innovative vocational curriculum that covers basic knowledge and skills that young artists need for a quality professional start, either as entrepreneurs (freelancers, independent artists, self-employed) or company employees. This innovative curriculum did not exist in any art secondary vocational school in the Republic of Croatia or in the programs of similar high schools in the region (Slovenia, Austria). After its development, the curriculum will be applied more widely than in the Republic of Croatia. It is also applicable in both secondary and higher vocational education and training. The project had the aim to educate: - students (in the piloting) to be self-sufficient and self-reliable in running their business careers – teachers to implement the materials of the new curriculum to benefit of the students - already finished artists in business/IT/digital skills they are curre

During the project, the participating organizations produced, piloted, evaluated, and published a new curriculum consisting of 3 modules covering the topics of entrepreneurial, IT, and communication skills for artists and designers. Partners first analysed the available research, agreed on a methodological framework of the curriculum, produced curriculum outcomes, produced learning and teaching materials, and then piloted the course through LTTA. Throughout the process and especially after the piloting the curriculum has been amended and improved according to evaluation results. The final curriculum document and all learning and teaching materials are published online and have been presented at the final conference in each partner country. Also, all materials are available in all partner languages and English.

The outcome of the project is a curriculum for the implementation of a new course. Through the project, experts developed a curriculum and learning and teaching materials that educate teachers and students in vocational schools for art and design professions. The curriculum consists of 3 modules: • Entrepreneurial skills for artists in creative industries (1) legal and fiscal framework for artists (2) pricing strategy, sales, and negotiation skills • IT skills for artists in creative industries: (1) setting up a self-promotion website with appropriate content (2) webshop implementation • Communication skills for artists in creative industries: (1) writing an artist statement and creating a portfolio (2) relationship building with clients and institutions (3) social media presence. Modules have been methodically developed, and their content is adapted to the specific needs of students and teachers of art schools who will implement the program. All of these topics are adjusted to the real needs of artists and designers after their graduation, in order to become a part of the labor market. All learning materials are made based on examples and case studies. Piloting of the modules of the new curriculum has been organized as a 5-day LTTA in Maribor with students and teachers from Maribor and Zagreb. The rest of the project activities (transnational meetings and dissemination events) have led to good practices exchange among partners. Teachers and schools gained new knowledge and experiences to improve teaching and learning methods, personal skills improved to ease communication across borders, such as intercultural and language skills. Students participating in the piloting of the project had raised skills and competencies for future careers and this is an advantage position over their peers. During the next years HDLU will use the curriculum and learning materials to produce a series of seminars for artists that will be publicly and permanently available on the HDLU website and video platform.