Section II: Art Education 

Prior to the 19th century, there was no public education for the arts in Japan. Students entered the private studio of an established artist and became part of a demanding master-disciple relationship. Techniques were considered trade secrets. 

After 1868 the government’s priority was modernization, and arts that had the potential to contribute to this received support. Foreign techniques, including drawing, oil painting and sculpture were especially valued. The first modern art school in Japan, the Technical Art School, was established in Tokyo in 1876, and professors were invited from Europe. Certain crafts that had the potential for industrialization and foreign export, such as ceramics and lacquer, were advanced, but with profound changes to modes of production. Other arts associated with traditional Japanese culture were not included in the curriculum. 
 
The first change in this trend came not from the government, but from the people. In 1878 a group of artists petitioned the Kyoto prefectural government for permission to establish a modern, public art school, the Kyoto Prefecture Painting School. Funds were raised privately from Kyoto merchants, and the school opened in 1880. The Kyoto Prefecture Painting School still exists today as the Kyoto City University of the Arts and is the oldest active public art school in Japan. Many of the artists featured here were teachers and students at this school, which was a leading center for the modernization of Japanese-style art. 
 
By the early the 20th century, both Yōga, Western-style oil painting, and Nihonga, Japanese-style painting, were increasingly taught in schools across Japan. Since public education was open, artists could freely study both techniques, and several of the artists in this exhibition trained in Western oil painting and drawing before going on to become successful Japanese-style artists.