On November 5, 2022, the International Symposium on Art and Technology of Zhejiang Shuren University was held in TED Lecture Hall, Building 2-3 of Shangde Park, Yangxunqiao Campus. In order to promote the new integration and promotion of traditional advantageous disciplines, this meeting brought together professional education experts of art and technology from China, Germany, Italy, Israel, Bulgaria, and other countries to share their wisdom and experience and discuss the new path of training model of advanced application-oriented talents in the art and technology, one of our new majors.
Nearly 100 teachers and students attended this conference, including Professor Li Lu, President of our university, Professor Chen Xinmin, our Vice President, Lu Guiqin, Secretary of Committee for Discipline Inspection of Shuren University, Professor Zhao Yan, Dean of the School of Art, and the leaders of relevant departments, as well as experts from China Academy of Art, Zhejiang University of Science and Technology, and Communication University of Zhejiang. The experts invited to attend the conference and gave lectures were Professor Geng Weidong, Director of the Research Center on the Fusion of Technology and Art of Zhijiang Laboratory and Doctoral Director of the School of Computer Science and Technology of Zhejiang University, Associate Professor Yu Jiadi, Deputy Dean of the School of Innovation and Design of China Academy of Art, Ziv Zeev Cohen, Specially-appointed Associate Professor of Israel from the School of Innovation and Design of China Academy of Art, Assadour Markarov, Visiting Professor of Bulgaria from the School of Sculpture and Public Art of China Academy of Art, and Cesare Moncelli, Specially-appointed Italian Professor of Zhejiang Shuren University, and Christoph John from Germany, Founder of PINWU and Rong Design Library.
President Li Lu made a passionate speech at the opening of the meeting. President Li said that General Secretary Xi Jinping, in his speech during his visit to the Academy of Fine Arts of Tsinghua University in 2021, proposed that "fine arts, art, science and technology complement each other, promote each other, and bring out the best in each other, it’s necessary to give play to the important role of fine arts in serving economic and social development, and to better serve the people's needs for a high quality of life with the results of fine arts". This important speech pointed out the direction and provided guidance for the development of the integration of art and science and technology disciplines. President Li talked about many examples of the integration of art and technology by combining with his own experience and mentioned the Italian Renaissance artist Leonardo da Vinci, who was a typical case of the integration of art, medical anatomy and science and technology, and pointed out that in the era of rapidly changing technology, art and technology had become twin brothers, so it was particularly meaningful to discuss the integration and development of both disciplines.
President Li then pointed out that the discipline construction should follow the law of discipline development. At first, in the concept of creating special disciplines, we must insist on relying on modern industries, actively serve local areas, and actively integrate with economic and social development strategies, which are also the philosophy of Shuren University that we always adhere to in running a university and discipline construction. In recent years, the university has strengthened the construction of discipline clusters, formed the layout of disciplines and majors with intersection of medicine, engineering and information technology, combination of literature, economics and management, and coordinated development of multiple disciplines, built an integrated construction and development system of provincial first-class disciplines -- university key disciplines -- undergraduate majors and disciplines (clusters), and promoted the integration and diversity of professional talent training by using the mode of cross-disciplines and multi-discipline integration.
President Li said, since its founding in 2000, the School of Art has always followed the needs of economic and social development, focusing on training the applied design talents of "designing for a better life". In order to further give full play to the university's comprehensive discipline advantages, and promote cross-disciplines and multi-discipline integration, the School of Art applied for the new major of "art and technology" and was approved by the Ministry of Education in September this year, which is a new path and new journey for the development of interdisciplinary education characteristics of the School of Art.
After the opening speech, President Li, together with other university leaders, presented guest certificates to the six experts who had traveled from afar, and Professor Zhao Yan, Dean of the School of Art, presented a visiting professor certificate to Ziv Zeev Cohen. The six experts then gave their speeches in turn.
After the speeches by the six experts, Professor Zhao Yan, Dean of the School of Art of Zhejiang Shuren University, gave the closing speech for the conference.
A full day of exchanging ideas and insights gave us a clearer perception of the latest developments, the current state of education and the talent training model of the integration of art and technology. With the integration of art and technology, the future is coming!
