There is a growing trend of learning art and design and making the most of it in business. Seminars on fine art appreciation and interactive courses at art museums are proving very popular, while some universities are holding open courses on fostering human resources with an emphasis on art.
These are all attempts at training people's ability to generate ideas by refining their art sensibility and using this ability to make breakthroughs in business settings.
"What do you feel when you look at this work?" asked a staff member at the National Museum of Modern Art, Tokyo, during the seminar "Dialogue in the Museum" on Jan. 25. The participants gave various responses, such as, "She has strong facial features," "Looks like she's lying down watching TV," and "Maybe the artist wanted to paint a powerful woman."
The educational program started in June last year to nurture people's abilities to think and make accurate observations in business settings by becoming aware of something new through viewing and discussing works of art at the museum in Chiyoda Ward, Tokyo.
The aforementioned opinions were given to one of the works discussed on that day: "Ratai Bijin" (Nude Beauty), a famous oil painting by Tetsugoro Yorozu (1885-1927). Designated as an important cultural property, it represents an era when Japanese society began appreciating individuality in art.
Yet such background information was not given to the participants as they stood face to face in front of the artworks. And under the seminar's rules, they were not allowed to deny each other's opinions.
"There's no correct answer to what you see when you look at a painting. I hope people will interpret works of art without any preconceptions," said curator Akiko Ichijo of the museum's program development department in charge of the seminar series.
The seminar that day ended with a lecture by writer Shu Yamaguchi, whose books include "Sekai no Elite wa naze Biishiki o Kitaerunoka?" (Why do the world's elite train their aesthetics?).
"I'd like to make the good use of what I learned today in my job, which is related to human resources development," said a 45-year-old company employee who participated in the event.
The museum holds three seminars a year under the program. Each seminar lasts about 3-1/2 hours and costs 20,000, yen yet it is so popular that the 30 subscription spots always quickly fill up. Many of the participants say the seminars have given them opportunities to visit the museum for the first time, which indicates that the program has also benefited the museum as well by increasing visitors.
The Yokohama Museum of Art supports in-house training programs of companies in the neighborhood and makes original curriculums tailored to the companies' requests. One such company in Yokohama carried out an educational program for employees involved in a new project in collaboration with the museum. Five kilograms of clay were given to each of the employees, who were divided into teams in order to create a town model using the clay. As they exchanged opinions and deepened mutual understanding, they were reportedly able to start the project smoothly.
"You can also learn how each colleague thinks and works," said Fumie Erikawa, who is in charge of public relations at the museum. "You can get the taste of a team effort that has nothing to do with the empirical value of your job as well as beyond generations and job titles, which I think has a profound effect."
Other similar moves by art museums include an art appreciation seminar for companies at the Pola Museum of Art in Hakone, Kanagawa Prefecture, which started in 2018. The seminar has apparently been useful to the participating companies ahead of competitions with rival firms, because it helps the employees in charge come up with creative ideas.
Universities also pay attention to how art and design can be applied to business and society. Tama Art University in Setagaya Ward, Tokyo, will start a new program for corporate people to learn the methodology of design in April. In producing designs, it is essential to figure out what society needs and to put oneself in the shoes of users. Therefore, "I presume that if the way of thinking in designs is tactfully incorporated into economy, perhaps it will be possible to break free from stagnation," said Masanori Aoyagi, the university's chairman of the board of directors, explaining the course named Creative Leadership Program.
In fiscal 2019, Musashino Art University in Kodaira, Tokyo, started an open course for adults with an emphasis on thinking in terms of art and design. The university also opened new undergraduate and graduate courses: the College of Creative Thinking for Social Innovation and the Graduate School of Creative Thinking for Social Innovation, to pursue usefulness in the encounters between society and arts.
"In today's society, you'd end up getting stuck with logical thinking alone," said Yamaguchi, who serves as the seminar lecturer at the MOMAT and other museums. "No one was talking about aesthetics until several years ago, but people in society have become aware that innovation is born where various sensitivities clash with each other. There is no immediate consequence in artistic experiences, but I'm sure they will be a big asset in business activities."
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