PROJECT
Digital Creation Hub
Lifting barriers to technology for Island creatives.
The Digital Creation Hub was a pilot resource centre giving creatives on central Vancouver Island barrier-free access to technology, software, equipment, and a dedicated Tech Coach. It operated from a secure, accessible room at The Old School House Arts Centre in Qualicum Beach.
Run in partnership between Creative Coast and The Old School House, and funded by the BC Arts Council and the Canada Council for the Arts, the Hub delivered 113 one-on-one appointments between October 2022 and May 2023. Artists travelled from Qualicum Beach, Port Alberni, Quatsino, Bowser, Comox, Parksville, Nanoose, and Nanaimo.
Support ranged from website accessibility and search optimization to e-commerce, social media strategy, Adobe software, photographing artwork, podcasting, and video. Of the artists who completed the satisfaction survey, 100 percent said they would recommend the service. The Hub was oversubscribed for the length of its funding.
Read the report
Download the full report: Digital Creation Hub 2023 Program Report (PDF) – a 16-page report on the pilot’s goals, usage, participant feedback, learnings, and recommendations.
Digital Creation Hub: Program Report 2023
Why this project matters
A slow laptop, an unfindable website, or unaffordable software can stop an artist’s career as effectively as a lack of talent. The Hub proved there is real, unmet demand for hands-on digital support in this region, and that a small, accessible space with a skilled coach can meet it.
Project partners
THE OLD SCHOOL HOUSE ARTS CENTRE
RELATED PROJECTS
PROJECT INFO:
DATE: 2022 – 2023
LEAD ORGANIZATIONS:
Creative Coast; The Old School House Arts Centre
FUNDING:
BC Arts Council; Canada Council for the Arts
PROJECT FOCUS:
Digital Literacy; Artist Support & Access