4 May 2026
In February 2026, international academic publisher De Gruyter released the De Gruyter Handbook of Digital and Online Arts Marketing: Technological, Social, and Cultural Trends, co-edited by Professor Desmond Hui, Head of the Department of Art and Design, and Dr Christine Choy, Associate Head and Associate Professor in the Department of Art and Design at The Hang Seng University of Hong Kong (HSUHK).
The handbook explores how digital technologies are transforming arts marketing and redefining relationships among arts organisations, artists, and audiences in the digital age. It emphasises that a strong online and digital presence has become essential for arts organisations, individual artists, and artworks alike. At its core, the handbook addresses a key tension in arts marketing: the organisation-centred approach, which treats marketing primarily as a strategic tool for achieving institutional goals, versus the consumer-centred approach, which prioritises audience needs, preferences, and satisfaction to boost engagement and sales.
The handbook positions digital and online arts marketing as a bridge between the two paradigms, and advocates a multidisciplinary co-creation model. It uses virtual platforms and networks to reach global audiences, foster collaborative creation, and build sustainable, humanistic communities around art appreciation. Drawing on the rapid growth of new media during the Covid-19 pandemic, the editors highlight hybrid online-physical experiences as the “new normal” in cultural production, distribution, and consumption moving forward.
The publication builds directly on research conducted at HSUHK under two projects funded by the Hong Kong Research Grants Council (RGC), including Art at Home: The Impact of New Media and Online Cultural Production on Home-Based Arts Engagement (2022–2024) and Arts for Well-being: The Impact of Arts Engagement on Parental Stress and Mental Well-being (2024–2025). This work reflects HSUHK’s unique “Liberal + Professional” education model, and its emphasis on the intersection of culture, business, and technology.
Professor Desmond Hui remarked, “Digital and online arts marketing offers a promising way forward that transcends the traditional divide between organisation-centred and consumer-centred approaches. It opens new possibilities for achieving a genuine balance between core artistic values and audience needs.”
Targeted at students, academics, and practitioners in arts marketing, cultural management, and related fields, the handbook strongly advocates for a shift from a competitive and transactional mindsets to one of co-creation, in which audiences are active partners in generating artistic value rather than passive consumers. It offers practical recommendations for arts organisations and artists, including the adoption of entrepreneurial and experimental digital strategies, the use of social media for authentic dialogue and collaboration, and efforts to address digital inequality for more inclusive practices.
Dr Christine Choy added, “This handbook is a direct outcome of our ongoing research at HSUHK. It embodies our commitment to integrating arts, business, and technology through a multidisciplinary lens. The volume aligns closely with the University’s mission by promoting co-creation and nurturing humanistic networks that connect communities through culture and digital innovation.”
The handbook also examines emerging trends such as algorithmic culture, Web3 technologies, and advanced immersive storytelling — frontiers that promise to further decentralise power and amplify co-creation in the arts.
This publication strengthens HSUHK’s leadership in research at the intersection of arts, culture, and digital innovation, while contributing to the long-term, sustainable development of Hong Kong’s cultural and creative industries and beyond.
