SPECIAL GRADUATE COURSES

Art and Education (Aesthetics and Art History)｜Artistic Anatomy (Aesthetics and Art History)
Conservation｜Conservation Science｜Preventive Conservation
Global Art Practice

The Art and Education course provides multifaceted education from practical creative activities to theoretical research on topics including the educational role of art and aesthetic human development.

In practical creative activities, the course seeks to raise the level of each student’s specialized skills as practitioners while broadening their perspective of artistic expression. At the same time, students undertake research to deepen their theoretical understanding of artistic creation, examining issues such as the ideas at the root of expression and the essential role of art in human development. The course also promotes interdisciplinary links with other fields such as medicine and welfare.

Since 2007 the half part of the Department of Artistic Anatomy has joined us.

Since its founding as an independent graduate course in 1963, the Department of Art and Education has turned out a number of excellent artists, educators, and researchers who are active in a wide range of fields such as universities, schools, art museums and so on.

>>?Department of Art and Education Official website (Japanese)

Master: The aim is to expand research in the field of one’s specialized practical skills and conduct theoretical research based on the problem(s) of one’s individual research. While studying the relationship between education and fine arts through the theory of materials and construction, including the theory of Art and Education, the students deepen their individual perspectives about Art and Education through theory and creative work. Furthermore, the students present their research achievements in their project-oriented study. In the first year, the students decide their research themes, and in the second year, the students concentrate on the Master’s thesis and creative work.

Doctor: In the doctoral program, individuals who have obtained the Master’s Program degree work toward further advancing their research. While expanding their expertise in their specialized area through production research, students also focus on theoretical research through field surveys and conference presentations, oriented towards writing academic papers. Through creative work and theory, students establish their perspectives on Art Education and communicate them to society through the practice and research of the importance of art education.

Master: The Master’s degree is awarded once the abovementioned curriculum policy has been fulfilled, the stipulated credits have been acquired, and the completed work is exhibited at an exhibition of completed creative works in their final year. Furthermore, a presentation must be made about the thesis at the Master’s thesis presentation. Both works will be reviewed and evaluated as suitable for receiving the academic degree.

Doctor: The doctoral degree is awarded once the abovementioned curriculum policy has been fulfilled, the stipulated credits have been acquired, the exhibition of the completed work and the public presentation of the doctoral thesis is conducted, and once the individual has passed the review and final examination conducted by the Thesis Review Committee comprising a supervisor in the concerned research field and teaching staff in related areas.

The specialized fields of practical techniques studied by students in the Department of Art and Education cover a wide range of genres, including Japanese painting, oil painting, prints, sculpture, crafts (metal hammering, ceramics, woodworking, and textile arts), and installations. Students pursue both their creative activities and theoretical researches from broad-ranging perspectives.

About the academic requirements, students complete the task of submitting practical works of arts and a dissertation paper for their graduation.
In the following course subjects, students investigate both practical techniques and theory.

1. Theory of Art and Education: Students learn the basic theory underlying artistic education and deepen their own understanding of the artistic activities.
2. Materials: Treating various artistic elements as materials, students consider the relationship between art and human beings from various perspectives, thereby deepening their thoughts on art and education.
3. Composition: Various topics are explored, including the philosophy of the artist in creating works of art and methods for giving them practical form.
4. Research themes: Students report the results of their theoretical research based on their own understanding of the issues, and pursue more in-depth research through the exchange of various opinions on these topics with other students and instructors in the Department.

The Department of Art and Education is home to international students with a deep interest in art and education. A number of these students have also obtained masters and doctoral degrees.

The Artistic Anatomy course was launched soon after the founding of the Tokyo Fine Arts School. As a field of study with a long history dating back more than 100 years, instructors of the program at the Tokyo Fine Arts School have included Ogai Mori and the painter Kei’ichiro Kume.

Artistic anatomy is the discipline of studying the skeletal and muscular structures of the human body and using these studies in artistic creation and research. Based on the motto that art is the study of nature, this course seeks hints toward creativity in the human form. Its goal is to develop a thorough understanding of the form and structure of the human body through means such as examining bones and observing living creatures.

Artistic anatomy, long an academic discipline, also serves as the generative force underlying the creation of new art. The Artistic Anatomy course proceeds along a path of study motivated by this conviction.

II. Graduate School of Fine Arts, Aesthetics and Art History Department, Artistic Anatomy Master’s Program

The Department of Aesthetics and Art History has been established with the underlying educational philosophy of “Nurturing individuals who can acquire traditionally cultivated creativity, cope with the modern period, and demonstrate outstanding originality.” To realize the educational objective of “Nurturing individuals who can contribute to various fields of art by expanding their awareness of various artistic elements related to fields focusing on fine arts through theoretical analysis and interpretation and through the study of artistic anatomy,” The following department and thesis curriculum has been consequently implemented:

1．In the Master’s Program, students enroll themselves in special lectures and seminars pertaining to their research area, as well as in other special lectures and seminars, and acquire advanced specialized knowledge and research skills.
2．In the Master’s Program, students present their individual research achievements as per their project study and acquire presentation and discussion skills essential for researchers.
3．In the Master’s Program, students are required to complete the Master’s thesis and place their own research within the specialized field.

III. The Graduate School of Fine Arts, Aesthetics, and Art History Department, Artistic Anatomy Doctoral Program

The Department of Aesthetics and Art History is founded on the educational philosophy of “Nurturing individuals who can acquire traditionally cultivated creativity, cope with the modern period, and demonstrate outstanding originality.” To realize the educational objective of “Nurturing individuals who can contribute to various fields related to art by expanding their awareness of various artistic elements related to fields focusing on fine arts through theoretical analysis and interpretation and through the study of artistic anatomy,” The following department and thesis curriculum has been consequently implemented:

1．In the Doctoral Program, students enroll themselves in special lectures and seminars relevant to their research area, as well as in other special lectures and seminars, and hone their advanced specialized knowledge and research skills.
2．In the Doctoral Program, students are required to proactively conduct thesis presentation and research presentation, narrow down the research achievements within the specialized area, and acquire skills to become an independent professional.
3．In the Doctoral Program, students are required to acquire a broad range of knowledge and liberal arts perspective(s) in not only their specialized area but also other relevant areas.
4．In the Doctoral Program, students are required to improve their research capabilities by themselves, and subsequently, guiding toward the successful completion of the doctoral thesis.

II．Graduate School of Fine Arts, Aesthetics and Art History Department,
Artistic Anatomy Master’s Program

Artistic Anatomy

The department of Aesthetics and Art History is established on the underlying educational philosophy of “Nurturing individuals who can acquire traditionally cultivated creativity, cope with the modern period, and demonstrate outstanding originality.” To realize the educational objective of “Nurturing individuals who can contribute to various fields related to art by expanding their awareness of various artistic elements related to fields focusing on fine arts through theoretical analysis and interpretation and through the study of artistic anatomy and gaining the experience of producing a creative work,” The following department and thesis curriculum has been consequently implemented:

1．In the Master’s Program, it is essential that students are enrolled for the stipulated period, attend all lectures specified in the curriculum policy, and acquire the required credits.
2．In the Master’s Program, students submit the Master’s thesis and can obtain the Master’s degree. The Master’s thesis must have originality, logical integrity, should adopt a research methodology that is appropriate for the research theme, and must accurately investigate and survey the research trends. The Master’s degree is awarded once the Master’s thesis has been assessed by the Thesis Review Committee.

III． Graduate School of Fine Arts Aesthetics and Art History Department, Artistic Anatomy Doctoral Program

1．In the doctoral program, the student must be enrolled for more than the stipulated period, be enrolled for all the lectures specified in the curriculum policy, and acquire the necessary credits.
2．In the doctoral program, the students submit the doctoral thesis and can obtain the doctoral degree. The doctoral thesis must have a high level of originality that contributes new knowledge in the concerned specialized field. The doctoral degree is awarded once the Thesis Review Committee has assessed the doctoral thesis, the Studio Committee has granted approval, and the thesis has been judged as competent. Further, public presentation and final examination are a compulsory part of the degree review.

Artistic Anatomy A and Artistic Anatomy B are provided for students enrolled within any of the major courses within the Faculty of Fine Arts. While elective courses, they are attended by large numbers of students.

Artistic Anatomy A provides an introduction to this field. In the first semester, students study the human skeletal structure; in the second semester, they study subjects including the muscular structure and the body surface. In Artistic Anatomy B, students study applications including the forms and skeletal structures of non-human creatures, based on the human form. They also study plants and various other natural forms.

Students who wish to pursue further studies in artistic anatomy can advance to graduate school.

Graduate students in the artistic anatomy studio come from a wide range of backgrounds, ranging from those who majored in practical techniques of painting, sculpture, and other art forms as undergraduates to those who studied theoretical subjects such as the science of art.

Students in the master’s degree program study more specialized, advanced artistic anatomy in lectures, seminars, and dissections. Lectures cover various topics, including macroanatomy, morphology, and observations of living creatures, as well as research on the expression of the human body in the history of art and various techniques of expressing form. Students also observe the natural environment on visits to locations including sea and forest settings. They also visit artistic sites in tours of art museums and travel to research ancient art. The goal is to deepen understanding of art by learning about nature and the classics.

On departing from graduate school, students submit theses. Ideally, organizing in words their thoughts and experiences concerning art will empower students in both research and in the creation of works of art, by clarifying their stances concerning art.

In the doctoral program, students are expected to select more specific research themes. To help prepare for their doctoral theses and to complete original and highly complete research, students attend individual lectures and seminars.

Following graduate school, students advance along various paths, becoming university instructors with expertise in artistic anatomy, applying their specialized knowledge at facilities such as art museums and galleries, or working as artists and designers.

The university’s artistic anatomy studio is the only studio in Japan in this field with graduate students, and relatively few other such studios exist elsewhere in the world. For the future, the program intends to seek out students from overseas in order to extend its network of alumni to students not just from Japan but from around the world.

This course was established to contribute to the conservation of cultural assets by fostering specialization in techniques for and research into the conservation and restoration of cultural assets.

In 1964, a class in techniques related to the conservation and restoration of cultural assets was established within the university’s master’s degree program. This was expanded and reorganized in 1995 into the Department of Conservation. The fields of conservation and restoration included in the program consist of studios in Japanese painting, oil painting, sculpture, crafts, and buildings. Students study and research restoration techniques in each of these areas, as well as examining and pursuing research on materials and classical techniques. Since the establishment of the doctoral program in 1977, numerous students have obtained doctoral degrees through this program.

The fields of conservation and restoration included in the program consist of studios in Japanese painting, oil painting, sculpture, crafts, and buildings.
The field of Conservation Science is further subdivided into the studios of Analytical Science and Materials Science.
The field of Preventive Conservation comprises two programs: the Museum Environment Program and the Conservation Materials Program.

>> Department of Conservation Official website (Japanese)

In this studio, students learn traditional techniques through practical hands-on training in reproduction and restoration techniques and the mounting of classical paintings. In the doctoral program, students examine topics from the perspectives of a wide range of fields, including the academic disciplines of the natural sciences and art history, as part of the process of research on reproduction and research intended to elucidate techniques and materials. The goal is to develop graduates capable of serving in guiding roles through such research on the restoration and conservation of Japanese paintings.

>> Japanese Painting (Conservation) Studio Official website (Japanese)

In this studio, students study techniques and materials for tasks such as the restoration and examination of oil paintings and the reproduction of classical paintings. The studio has also recently pursued work in the area of restoration of works created on paper, including sketches and prints. Elements of restoration draw on a wide range of disciplines, including recording technologies, optical studies, pigmentation analysis, and art history. The goal is to develop graduates capable of working in the conservation and restoration of cultural assets based on a keen and comprehensive understanding of artistic issues obtained through practical hands-on training and lectures.

>> Oil Painting (Conservation) Studio Official website (Japanese)

In this studio, in addition to studying specific restoration techniques, students pursue research on clarifying production techniques as well as preserving them. Keeping in mind at all times the fact that cultural assets produced from the cultural climate of the country play a fundamental role in the spirit of the Japanese people, the studio puts into practice efforts intended to pass on cultural artifacts and the spirit in which they were created with the utmost respect for the culture and creations bequeathed by our ancestors.

>> Sculpture (Conservation) Studio Official website (Japanese)

Materials and techniques employed by cultural assets in the area of crafts are diverse and multifaceted. Since such works are created using these materials and techniques either individually or in combination, the studio sees accurate information on each as essential. The studio provides training to develop restoration researchers and technicians (both in Japan and around the world) in various areas of craftwork, including research on techniques conducted through practical training in restoring and duplicating work, and research on conserving and restoring craft cultural assets based on the characteristics of cultural assets from each period in