PhD Programs-China Academy of Art

Faced with the cultural discourse and academic ecology of the new century, this doctoral program—Marxist Literary and Art Theory—integrates literary history, art history, semiotics, narratology, and cultural theory to retrieve Marxist intellectual resources. It charts the development and intellectual horizons of Marxist literary and artistic theory since the twentieth century, examines Marxism’s formative role in modern Chinese literary and art history, explores the Sinicization of Marxist aesthetics as a critical pathway, and advances both theoretical research and practical engagement in Marxist literary and artistic theory.

21. Direction: International Museum Studies and Curatorial Practice

Supervisors: Yu Xuhong, Wang Yuegong, Xu Jie, Dong Baohou, Yu Hui, Roger M. Buergel (Germany)

This emerging doctoral program focuses on training professionals who can bridge rigorous academic research on Chinese ancient art with the curatorial practice of large-scale international exhibitions. It investigates, in the context of contemporary digital technologies, the fundamental principles and methodologies of exhibition storytelling, and explores innovative approaches to exhibition design. The curriculum systematically addresses the operational frameworks and procedural protocols of international exhibition management, effective cross-cultural communication strategies, and a broad range of extension practices—including scholarly catalogues, digital media integration, academic symposia, cultural product development, and public engagement outcomes.

22. Direction: Visual Sinology

Supervisors: Lothar Ledderose (Germany), Bi Fei

This program traces the scholarly genealogy of Chinese visual arts, integrating modern academic perspectives and methodologies to re-examine the evolution and historical trajectory of ancient Chinese visual culture. It explores the dynamic interplay between visual production and social frameworks, everyday life, and collective consciousness. By situating artistic practices within the interconnected realms of cultural and intellectual history, this approach seeks to illuminate the enduring values of Chinese art in a globally resonant scholarly idiom.

23. Direction: Chinese Paleography

Supervisors: Cao Jinyan

The Chinese Paleography focuses on China's pre-Qin writing systems, integrating transmitted texts with excavated materials to decipher and interpret paleographic evidence. Its primary subjects include oracle-bone inscriptions, bronze inscriptions, Chu bamboo slips, and Warring States seal script. By rigorously exploring China's material and spiritual civilizations, this field seeks to forge new theoretical and methodological pathways in Chinese character studies within the framework of "Oriental studies." Ultimately, it aims to sustain the legacy of outstanding Chinese culture and cultivate highly skilled innovative scholars.

24. Direction: Social History of Art

Supervisors: Tang Lixing, Zhang Shengman

Founded in December 2023 by Professor Tang Lixing at the China Academy of Art, this program is dedicated to examining art within its social and cultural contexts. It seeks to understand the roles and meanings of art in society, as well as the dynamic interplay between artistic practice and social structures.

The research encompasses four primary areas:

1. Social Production and Circulation of Art–Investigates the social status of artists, conditions of creative production, and market mechanisms, while analysing the circulation, consumption, and cultural significance of artworks.

2. Art and Social Issue–Explores the intersections of art with gender, class, and politics, with attention to the functions and agency of art in societal contexts.

3. Art and Visual Culture–Examines how visual culture shapes social cognition and identity, and assesses the social implications of various visual media.

4. Methods in Social History of Art– Employs interdisciplinary approaches drawn from sociology, anthropology, and related fields to develop robust methodologies for studying the art–society nexus.

25. Direction: Art Philosophy and Contemporary Art

Supervisors: Yu Xuhong, Sun Zhouxing, Peng Feng

Grounded in phenomenology and the philosophical developments since the twentieth century, the Art Philosophy and Contemporary Art program emphasizes the reciprocal engagement between intellectual history and art history. Working within the post-philosophical conditions of contemporary culture and history, it strives to articulate an alternative path for understanding art and artistic practice—one that reimagines critical thinking and charts new horizons for human creativity in the future.

26. Direction: Talent Development System in Chinese Fine Arts

Supervisors: Feng Zhiguo

The Talent Development System in Chinese Fine Arts program builds upon the deep legacy of higher art education in China, while confronting the developments and challenges that lie ahead. Incorporating research methods and theoretical frameworks from related humanities disciplines, it examines the developmental trajectories and defining attributes of outstanding art professionals, and synthesizes historical lessons from higher education institutions in talent cultivation. In parallel, it responds to contemporary imperatives—most notably, the rise of artificial intelligence—by reassessing the evolving profile of art practitioners and devising corresponding pedagogical innovations. The overarching goal is to progressively construct a self-sustaining system for cultivating high-quality art talent, one that bears the distinctive imprint of Chinese educational and cultural identity.

27. Direction: Classical Chinese Philosophy and Art Theory

Supervisors: Zhang Wenjiang, Hu Xiaoming

Ranging from classical heritage to contemporary reality, and from the natural world to the cultivation of mind and heart, the Classical Chinese Philosophy and Art Theory program is ultimately oriented toward the concerns of present-day life. It aims to exercise creative agency, recover foundational sources, and open up future possibilities. Revisiting classical learning serves a twofold purpose: first, to trace its historical lineages and transformations, and to explore their intersections with art theory; second, to position Chinese culture within the broader framework of world civilizations and to define its particularity.

28. Direction: Art Education and Intellectual History

Supervisors: Du Wei, Qu Jingdong, Xu Ping, Cao Yiqiang

Dedicated to the exploration of human sensibility and aesthetic judgment, this program attends to the dynamic interactions between art and other fields of knowledge, as well as their roles in shaping historical narratives and theoretical frameworks, thereby stimulating creative capacities. Within the broader context of global civilization, it endeavors to reconstruct a parallel paradigm of art and education: taking art as a focal point, it engages in a comprehensive inquiry into human cognition, cultural formation, and social thought. Building upon the conceptual axis of "art/education," the program investigates art's intellectual contributions to creative knowledge systems, with a sustained focus on the reciprocal influences between art and science. It ultimately aspires to initiate, within the established structures of university education, a new disciplinary model that embodies a holistic integration of mind, body, knowledge, and practice.

29. Direction: Materials for Chinese Painting and Calligraphy

Supervisors: Zhang Qing

Centered on the material foundations of Chinese painting and calligraphy, this program traces the historical evolution of traditional materials and examines their close interrelation with technical practices. Particular attention is given to traditional handmade paper and its applications in both contemporary artistic practice and the restoration of historical works. Through collaborative engagement with research and technical institutions at home and abroad, the program pursues improvements in the design and fabrication of traditional papers. The broader objective is to re-energize Chinese painting and calligraphy materials—promoting their creative adaptation and innovative advancement within a framework of cultural preservation—while perpetuating and enriching the enduring traditions of Chinese painting and calligraphy.

30. Direction: Opera Studies

Supervisors: Wang Rui

The Opera Studies program designates a disciplinary field centered on the art form of opera, encompassing systematic inquiry into its theoretical frameworks, practical traditions, internal logic, and operative principles. As a newly emerging interdisciplinary domain, it integrates knowledge and practice from drama, music, literature, dance, visual arts, design, and the philosophy of art. The doctoral program in Opera Studies is committed to training exceptional researchers and creative professionals in opera theory, composition, dramaturgy, aesthetics, historiography, and criticism.

31. Direction: Century Studies in Chinese Art Education

Supervisors: Yang Hualin, Li Chao, Peng Fei

As a specialized subfield of modern and contemporary Chinese art historiography, this program examines the history of art education in China from the late nineteenth century to the present. It endeavors to reconstruct the evolution of art educational institutions and curricular disciplines, to elucidate the causal relationships underlying major historical developments, and to evaluate the achievements, shortcomings, and historical legacies of key individuals. Ultimately, this historical inquiry aims to offer informed perspectives and practicable lessons for the current practice of art education.

32. Direction: Plateau and Peak Studies in Contemporary Chinese Fine Arts

Supervisors: Liang Jiang, Zhang Xiaoling

Dedicated to examining the deep-seated dynamics of the "plateau–peak" trajectory in twentieth-century Chinese art, this program operates at the intersection of global vision and local particularity. It engages with cutting-edge inquiries into the modern transformation of fine arts, the formative logic of artistic peaks, the interplay between intellectual currents and socio-cultural change, cross-cultural translation, and digital humanities-based empirical research. With a strong emphasis on systematic methodology, intellectual originality, and interpretive depth, the program seeks to develop scholars of exceptional caliber, equipped with robust theoretical knowledge, interdisciplinary agility, and the initiative to forge new academic pathways. Its broader mission is to foster outstanding research leaders who will advance the construction of a distinctively Chinese knowledge framework for the fine arts and the building of a cultural powerhouse.

33. Direction: Art-Science Integration in the Fine Arts

Supervisors: Min Han

Against the transformative context of emerging technologies—including artificial intelligence, mixed reality, and blockchain—this program is dedicated to the innovative integration of art and science within the contemporary fine arts. Operating from within China's cultural specificity and its domestic technological infrastructure, the program conducts original inquiry into novel paradigms of artistic production enabled by AI toolchains, reconfiguring the media languages and creative processes of contemporary art. Through spatial computing and mixed reality technologies, it develops a new performative framework that bridges physical and virtual spaces, characterized by behavioral interactivity and cross-dimensional engagement. Employing Web3 and distributed network systems, it further seeks to establish a closed-loop intelligent art ecosystem that encompasses creation, presentation, dissemination, and value circulation. With Eastern aesthetics as its conceptual foundation, the program translates traditional aesthetic principles into algorithmic logic, thereby reimagining the ethical and value dimensions of human-machine co-creation. Its broader mission is to advance academic inquiry in art-science integration, to formulate a tech-aesthetic system bearing a distinctive Chinese signature, and to nurture highly qualified innovators capable of engaging with global cutting-edge discourses—scholars who combine cultural awareness, creative agility, and technological expertise.