Southeast University has a long tradition of art education and theoretical research. As early as the beginning of the twentieth century, the university was named as the Liangjiang Normal School, President Li Ruiqing began to set up the Hand-drawing Department and was the pioneer of the modern art education in China. Many art masters taught and trained a large number of outstanding talented artists, including music educator Li Shutong, opera researcher and educator Wu Mei, aesthetic master Zong Baihua, and painting masters such as Zhang Daqian, Xu Beihong, Lu Fengzi, Chen Zhifo, Fu Baoshi, Wu Zuoren, Huang Junbi.

In the 1990s, Southeast University established the Department of Art (1994) and the Department of Art Communications (previously was the Center for Modern Art before 2004), moreover, the PhD program was first established in China. In September 2006, based on the previous Art Department and Art Communication Department, the School of Art was established. At present, the School of Arts contains the Department of Art Theory, the Department of Animation, the Department of Fine Arts, and the Department of Design. The School of Arts also hosts the Art Research Center, Folk Art Research Center, the China Art International Communication Strategy Collaborative Innovation Center, the Chinese Calligraphy Research Institute,the Institute of Drama and Novel, The Oriental Culture Institute, and the Cultural Industry Research Institute, etc. The School of Arts has 57 full-time teachers, including 19 Professors, 17 Associate Professors, 20 Lecturers and 1 Assistant. More than 84.2% of teachers have the PhD degrees, and more than 50% of teachers have either overseas study experience or postdoctoral research study.

The School of Art at Southeast University specializes in art education and research. It has the Post-doctoral Research Center, the PhD program of Art Theory, the MA program of theFine Art and Design and five undergraduate programs: the Animation, Visual Communication Design, Product Design, Environmental Art Design, and Fine Arts.

The School of Arts has either ledor attended 25 national research projects, 28 provincialprojects. At present, the School of Artsleads 2 national major research projects, 8 national general research projects, 16 provincial projects. The faculty has won 29 provincial research awards, and published more than 110 academic books, 30 text books, and published as many as 1200 academic papers. Over tyears, we have developed many outstanding postdoctoral and PhD students whohave been the leading figures in the discipline of art history in China, furthermore, a wide range of excellent students and undergraduates have beenthe mainstay in the art world.

In 2012, the Art Theory Department ranked the top one in the Postgraduate Education Discipline Ranking List of the Ministry of Education; furthermore, it was awarded the major disciplinesuccessively by the “10th Five-year Plan” and the “13th Five-year Plan”in the Jiangsu Province. In 2007, the Colleague of Art and Ethics finished the 985 Project Phase II: Science, Ethics and Art, “Philosophy and Social Science Innovation Base Project”, the 985 Project Phase III: the Art and Creative Industry Research, the “Philosophy and Social Sciences Base Project”, and the 211 Project: Arts Theory Innovation and Applied Research Project. In 2007, the discipline of the Art was increased as the national major discipline by the Ministry of Education, which had been both the only one national major discipline of Artin the Jiangsu Province and that of the Art Theory discipline in China. The School of Arts now hosts the Jiangsu Province Advantage Discipline Project, the Jiangsu Provincial University Philosophy and Social Science Key Research Center.

The School of Arts has open education and research policy. In terms of the research and education, we collaborate with a wide range of leading universities, research institutes, cultural enterprises and institutions at home and abroad. At present, it has grown into an influential art institution and research center in China. It will contribute to promote art research and education by collaborating with domestic and international universities.