In the most distinctive artistic and cultural landscape along Zhejiang province’s Zhijiang Art Corridor, lie some of the best-known cultural landmarks and sceneries, and the China Academy of Art is undoubtedly one of them.

“Organize Chinese Art, introduce Western art, blend Western and Chinese arts and create art of the times.” Thus states the academic slogan of the China Academy of Art. Proposed by Lin Fengmian (1900-1991), a renowned Chinese artist and the founding president of the academy, this mission statement has guided its development since its establishment. From the first campus near the Solitary Hill to the campus on the Xiangshan Mountain and the campus in Liangzhu that is still under construction, the China Academy of Art has firmly planted its roots into the rich soil of Zhejiang culture, continuously producing artistic talents. A leader and pioneer in the development of contemporary art not only in Zhejiang province but all over China, the academy has been instrumental in shaping the public’s aesthetic and cultural tastes, making outstanding contributions to Zhejiang people’s pursuit of high-quality life. 

In 1928, the National Academy of Art, the predecessor of the China Academy of Art, was founded in China on the bank of the West Lake in Hangzhou by the famed educator Cai Yuanpei (1868-1940). In fact, the site was specially selected by Cai himself. Under the leadership of the first president, Lin Fengmian, the academy embarked on a journey of “substituting aesthetic education for religion”, and called for and led the modern art movement, marking the beginning of China's higher education in art.

Indeed, in the course of its 90-odd-year history, the China Academy of Art has never wavered in its imparting aesthetic education to its students, and such spirit has also been inherited and developed from one generation to another. Throughout the years, the development of the academy has always followed two clearly articulated concepts. One, raised by Lin Fengmian is “inclusiveness”. The other, principally advocated by renowned painter Pan Tianshou, is “innovation based on tradition”. These ideas have helped create a healthy humanistic environment that is most conducive to the cultivation of talents and the generation of new ideas. They have also become the most important hallmarks and traditions of the China Academy of Art. Indeed, precisely under the inspiration and encouragement of these thoughts that the China Academy of Art has been able to be at the forefront of the area of arts and to lead the development of modern and contemporary Chinese art without fail.

Upholding its motto to “organize Chinese Art, introduce Western art, blend Western and Chinese arts and create art of the times”, the China Academy of Art has made remarkable achievements and become a recognized art institution both at home and abroad. As well as Lin Fengmian and Pan Tianshou, among some of the most celebrated names who either taught or studied at the academy, are Huang Binhong (1865-1955), Sha Menghai (1900-1992), Pang Xunqin (1906-1985), Wu Guanzhong (1919-2010), Li Keran (1907-1989), Zhao Wuji (1920-2013), and many others. These masters of arts, most of whom are also pioneers and explorers of arts and aesthetic education, have consistently invigorated the development of Chinese arts with their teachings, their knowledge, their ideas, and their works.

It is no surprise that the academy has been witnessing the outstanding talents it has produced actively engaged in various artistic endeavors. For example, the official logos for both the 2016 G20 Hangzhou Summit and the 2022 Hangzhou Asian Games were designed by Professor Yuan Youmin and his team, which are full of humanistic subtleties of the Jiangnan (south of the Yangtze River) area, and show the Zhejiang spirit to boldly take the lead in the era. Meanwhile, professors, students, and graduates from the academy have won multiple awards at China’s quintennial National Exhibition of Fine Arts. 

The Xiangshan campus of the China Academy of Art, designed by Professor Wang Shu, dean of the academy’s School of Architecture, creatively applied a style that has reconciled modernity and tradition for the 20 plus buildings spreading over the verdant mountains and hills. As the first Chinese citizen to have won the Pritzker Prize, the world’s top architecture prize, Wang, his works and his conception of architecture have been widely recognized domestically and internationally. In August 2021, the Xiangshan campus was listed as one of the “25 Most Significant Works of Postwar Architecture” by the New York Times, the only Chinese architecture on the list. 

Over the past 90 years and more, the China Academy of Art has built and maintained widespread influence in China’s literary and art circles. In 2015, it was selected as one of the key universities in Zhejiang province, and in 2017, the academy and its arts discipline were included in the nation’s “double first-class program”, i.e. world first-class universities and first-class academic disciplines. A prestigious art school in China, now, the China Academy of Art has also ranked among the world’s top art institutions. The School of Chinese Painting and Calligraphy, in particular, is one of the best and the most influential in the education of Chinese painting and calligraphy.

Since 2015, the China Academy of Art has successfully hosted several editions of the Design Intelligence Award. China’s first international academic award in industrial design, the award has been turned into an international exchange platform for innovative design and attracted 60 countries and regions, institutions, organizations, and individuals to enter into the competition. In addition, the China International Poster Biennale, launched by the China Academy of Art in 2003 and regarded as China’s top poster design competition, has seen participants from more than 40 countries and regions around the world taking part.