Casey Wilson, Wokai’s Founder, talks about their upcoming Fine Art Project and their plans to lift 100,000 people out of poverty
Text by Jennifer Thomé, Photos by Sui and Chen Chunlin

For the past four years, Wokai has been lifting people out of poverty through their unique online microfinancing platform. Since their launch, the organization’s fundraising efforts have spread throughout the world, and finally, last June, they returned to China, where Wokai par tnered with the China Population Welfare Foundation to raise funds from local people. Now they ar tapping into an even bigger donor base by launching an art exhibit whose profits will go to benefit their borrowers.

Are you an artistic person? 

While I’ve dabbled in painting, sketching, photography, and music, I’m embarrassed to say that I am not an artistic person. If anything, I would say that entrepreneurship would be my only art form…The idea of starting out with an idea and a blank canvas and over time, whittling away until that idea transforms into a living, breathing organization. That said, while I’m not a very artistic person, I have a huge appreciation for art and the unique genius of artists.

What motivated you to launch Wokai’s Fine Art Project?

I’m really excited about this project as it’s the first initiative I’ve seen which leverages art to empower people to lift themselves from poverty. Chen Chunlin’s photography has given us a way to show the spirit and dignity of our microloan recipients, in a way that crosses cultural and socioeconomic boundaries. Our staff is constantly inspired by our interactions with the micro-entrepreneurs that we support in rural China, their stories, the challenges they face, and their determination to get out of poverty. However, donors who, at most, read these micro-entrepreneurs’ sorties online, do not have that same opportunity.

With Chen Chunlin’s photos, the public can connect in a new way with our micro-entrepreneurs, see their passion and get a glimpse of the impact of microfinance first hand. Finally, if they purchase a print, 70 percent of purchase price will become “Wokai Credits” that they can distribute to fund a micro-entrepreneur, just like the ones in our photos, through our website.

What do you expect to come out of this project?

Over the next year we will be leveraging our network of over 400 volunteers around the world to roll this out into a global movement of art for change. We already have over 20 exhibitions in seven cities in North America, Greater China, and Singapore. We are looking forward to expanding this to all of our 20 chapter cities and empower our volunteers to share the real stories behind microfinance in China, and to have a tool by which to increase the impact that they can have personally on raising funds for this cause. At the end of the day, through this Fine Art Project we hope to engage more people around the world with our cause and create an innovative way to enable micro-entrepreneurs in rural China to lift themselves from poverty.

Do you think that this type of art-charity hybrid is a better fit for the emerging charitable interest in China?

This art-charity hybrid model enables us to engage an entirely new demographic, whether that be more higher ticket and/or mature donors who would prefer donating in a more tangible, offline mode, art enthusiasts, or simply people that want a tangible product in exchange for their support. I think this is fitting for the emerging charitable market in China for a number of reasons: First, given that people in China are so passionate about their country and their people, China focused philanthropy is something that can be uniquely viral. When Chinese donors purchase these prints and hang them on their walls, they are sharing a story that friends and family will likely engage with as well. Secondly, since philanthropy is still in its inception here in China, models like this, that push the concept of philanthropy, can serve as a foundation for China sector to create its own unique, innovative definition for what it means to engage in philanthropy.