The Art Center, a cross-departmental organization at The University of Tokyo established with the goal of "expanding intellect through art, and open the future of society," marks its first anniversary in May.
The center promotes interdisciplinary research in collaboration with artists, while cultivating the creativity of students through art practices.
Seven graduate schools of the university, including those of arts and sciences, education and medicine, are participants in the organization. The center's researchers specialize in a wide range of fields, from art history to cognitive science.
"It is significant that teachers in various departments be able to form networks and talk about various things," said University of Tokyo professor Kenji Kajiya, who is the deputy director of the center.
Meanwhile, the university invites professional artists to serve as part-time lecturers on their art practices at the liberal arts and education departments, with roughly 400 of the 6,600 liberal arts freshmen and sophomores taking the course.
A variety of classes have been held so far, including drawing practice by painter O Jun, photography by photographer Yurie Nagashima, and singing by opera singer Kiyomi Toyoda in combination with scientific physical training taught by associate professor Kazutoshi Kudo, a human movement science specialist.
The feedback from students include, "The class taught me how to take photos as well as express scenery and emotions," "My voice lessons seem to be useful for giving presentations," and "I feel my various senses that have been dead since entering university have been revived a bit."
In order to properly measure the effectiveness of such education methods, the university is devising a complex survey encompassing various points of view.
In Japan, students rarely have the opportunity to enroll in classes of an artistic nature at university. According to Kajiya, however, Harvard University and Princeton University have introduced this type of education in liberal arts, and Peking University and Tsinghua University are also proactive in the field.
Due to the spread of the new coronavirus infection, the university has been forced to drastically change its schedule in fiscal 2020, but plans to increase the number of classes.
"Students here will eventually follow their own path in fields such as law and engineering, which is different from art. Even so, we strive to provide a system that allows any student interested in art to enroll in courses," Kajiya said. "Art education is very effective in encouraging the development of creativity and in acquiring diverse values. It should be useful in any field."
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