Bulletin Spring‧Summer 2001

Continuous Curriculum Reform In the department's early days, the curriculum was focused primarily on three streams of studio art — Chinese painting, Western painting, and arts and crafts. The last stream, which covered practical design, was later cancelled due to resource limitations. Despite this, the vision of the department has influenced the development of tertiary art education to this day. In 1971, the department combined the two remaining streams into a studio art section, and introduced a new section on art history, becoming the only academic department in Hong Kong to provide both a studio and an art history curricula. The aim is to train students in both streams according to the Chinese and the Western traditions. The postgraduate curriculum was also expanded considerably in the early 90s to include, in addition to the previous M.Phil. programme in history of Chinese art, a Ph.D. programme in the same area, and an MF A programme specializing in creative art. Local students wishing to pursue further studies in fine arts now no longer need to go overseas to do so. Prof. Chan Yuk-keung (above), another alumnus of the department, says the studio art programme embraces different forms of expression in Chinese and Western art. The emphasis is to i n t r o d u c e s t u d e n t s to w o r k s by international artists. The aim is t o stimulate students into finding their own creative direction , and to reflect on d i f f e r e n t f o r m s of e x p r e s s i o n in contemporary Chinese and Western art, such as mixed media and installation. Subjects such as photography and design have also been launched t o prepare students for development in digital art. Prof. Chan says, 'The department's achievements in this regard are due partly to Hong Kong's artistic tradition and the space it offers. Students have no hang- ups over different schools of thought, nor are they inhibited by political considerations. They have the whole world at their disposal. Take modern ink paintings for example. Although their subject matter is not confined to landscape, birds, and flowers, they still exude "Chineseness". They also contain a temporal and spatial juxtaposition or an integration of the then and now. This is reflective and thought provoking.' A c t i v e C r e a t i o n Undoubtedly the CUHK Department o f Fine A r t s is an important breeding ground for creative art in Hong Kong. It stages several art e x h i b i t i o n s each year ， including the Annual Exhibition, the B A Graduation Exhibition, and the MFA Graduation Exhibition, where the works of students are displayed. Teachers, students, and alumni also participate frequently in local and overseas art exhibitions an d competitions, including the Contemporary Hon g Kong Art Biennial Exhibition, the Philippe Charriol Foundation A r t Exhibition, Nokia A r t s Aw a r ds — A s i a - P a c i f i c, the International Biennial of Sao Paulo, Brazil, a n d t h e V e n i c e Biennale. Many have won prizes, and their wo r ks have been acquired by museums, galleries, and private collectors. BA Graduation Exhibition 2000 Something About Painting No. 1 Lam Tung Pang, Year 3 student in Fine Arts Certificate of Merit, Nokia Arts Award s — Asia Pacific 2000 Chinese University Bulletin Spring • Summer 2001 24