Nanjing University School of Arts was established in November 2017, through a merger of the Art Institute and the Academy of Fine Arts. Since then, the faculty members and students have worked assiduously and creatively to perform world-class teaching and research. Our scholarly community is characterized by the following features: 1. We are committed to advancing the mission of integrating art theory with art practice and leading art practice with theoretical inquiries, thereby better serving the national and regional cultural development. 2. We endeavor to achieve an enriching nexus between research and teaching. Our students are trained to become artistically intelligent and intellectually artistic. 3. Inclusion, diversity and internationalization are basic pillars for our academic success. The school is empowered by a diverse faculty and a dynamic academic exchange built on partnership with international entities. We leverage our global perspective and local consciousness to approach art. 4. The special ambiance of scholarship that has characterized the School of Arts will continue to be vibrant and leading the fields including art history and theory, theater, film and television studies, fine arts and calligraphy, art communication, art education and aesthetic education. Our faculty members are conducting five major projects supported by the National Social Science Fund of China and the National Social Science Fund of China – Art Program. The faculty members have published a prolific number of field-defining academic books and peer-reviewed articles in elite Chinese journals such as Social Sciences in China and Literature and Art Studies as well as in leading international academic journals.
Art education has been deeply rooted in and actively engaged with the history of Nanjing University. Back in 1906, Liangjiang Normal School approved the Department of Graphics and Crafts, which offered two majors in Graphics and Crafts, one minor in Music, and several courses including Western-style painting, Chinese painting, Graphics with Drawing Instruments, Crafts and Music. Institutionalization of graphics and crafts marked the beginning of modern art education in China. In 1928, the Art Department was conceived at the College of Education of the Central University. The French-educated artist Xu Beihong became head of Art Department and taught Western-style painting. The Art Department of the Central University was once home to renowned faculty members, including Zhang Daqian, Chen Zhifo, Pang Xunqin, Lü Sibai, Wu Zuoren and Fu Baozhi. In 1952, due to the nationwide restructuring of higher education, some academic units, such as the Art Department at the College of Education, were separated from Nanjing University, which later became the Art Department and the Music Department of Nanjing Normal University.
In the 1990s, Nanjing University witnessed the emergence of the Art and Cultural Education Center (1996), the Sculpture Institute (1998), the Academy of Fine Arts (2003) and the Art Institute (2013). Led by Professor Kang Er, Professor Wu Weishan, Professor Zhou Xian et al., these institutions provided students with the knowledge, habits, values and skills through art education, practice and research. Today, the School of Arts takes part in the construction of the “double first-rate” discipline of Chinese Language, Literature and Arts.
The School of Arts delivers its services in a way that follows and advances the university motto “Sincerity with Aspiration, Perseverance and Integrity.” By consolidating university-wide resources of art education and forging ahead in the academic field of arts, the School of Arts will continue to play a full part in making Nanjing University a top, world-class higher education institution.
He Chengzhou
April, 2023
