Okinawa Prefectural University of Arts

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Our university was founded on the principle of the relentless pursuit of beauty： both the distinctive beauty created by Okinawan culture and humankind's universal beauty. By that principle, we are a comprehensive arts school consisting of a Faculty of Arts and Crafts, a Faculty of Music, graduate schools, a Research Institute, and a University Library and Arts Museum. The year 2016 marked our 30th anniversary. Thus far, approximately 3,400 graduates have completed their studies and flown the nest. They are now actively engaged in creative endeavors, some working as musicians and performers, artists, and much more.
The elemental spirit underlying the Prefectural University of Arts's founding principles is the relentless pursuit of beauty, the distinctive beauty created in the Okinawan culture, and humankind's universal beauty.
To achieve this, the uniqueness of regional culture must be made clear. The problems facing areas of traditional arts such as arts, crafts, music, and performing arts must be addressed directly and in a practical fashion, revealing each artistic endeavor's unique nature.
At our Tonokura Campus and with Shuri Castle as our backdrop, we foster our particular academic traditions with various musical instruments ranging from the Ryukyuan Sanshin （shamisen） to the rugged western instruments. The sounds of those instruments and voices raised in song flow endlessly through our halls like a gentle breeze. Our new and spacious Sakiyama campus provides an educational and research environment for those in the fields of sculpture, design, and crafts in its free and open grounds.
On each of our campuses, we value and respect the individuality of our students. Using small classes and individual tutoring, we provide an education that is both rich and deep. Besides, exhibitions and concerts performed both by the students and teaching staff are held throughout the year. Our university is truly overflowing with creative energy.
Through educational initiatives such as summer schools, public courses, and our roving university program in the outer islands, we make ample use of the unique features and appeal of each major artistic discipline. We are also actively involved in providing opportunities to local children and younger students for engagement in art appreciation and promoting the revitalization of the arts and artistic exchange throughout the region.
Taking advantage of our geographical position at the crossroads of East Asia and the Pacific region, we have entered into agreements for artistic and scholarly exchange with eleven universities in China, Taiwan, Thailand, Indonesia, Italy, Germany and the United States of America, and we actively encourage students to study abroad.
Amidst the breathtaking scenery of Okinawa, where the weather is warm and the time passes at its own pace, students from all over Japan, bursting with artistic ambition and with an abundance of talent, are attracted to our university. Art allows us to look inside ourselves, refines our communication skills, and fosters lifelong wisdom. That is the very essence of the art education to which our university aspires.
Okinawa's regional culture and traditions hold a unique place within the context of Japanese culture and hold important content in the search for the sources of cultures and traditions and understand the universal ways in which culture is generated. It must also be said that the questions of the continuation and creativity of this singular set of arts and culture, cultivated in the unique environment of Okinawa, are an essential challenge, both in terms of the overall state of Japanese culture and of the state of Okinawa Prefecture itself. The fostering of human resources to address these challenges serves an essential purpose as a bridge into the far future.
We at the Prefectural University of Arts, located at the southernmost point of our country, will focus on the Pacific cultural area, with East Asia and Southeast Asia region as our axis, and aim to uncover the realities of the various arts and cultures and pursue our research into our connections to and uniqueness from these regional cultures and traditions, as well as investigate their expansion. Our objective is to create a unique research and educational institution, focusing on the Pan-Asian cultural arts' distinctive characteristics.

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