The mission of the Graduate Institute of Art and Technology, National Tsing Hua University is to “cultivate techno-art talents with humanistic literacy and experience of innovative practice, foster a favorable environment for the education, research, and creation of techno art, and facilitate the development of techno-art education and related industries in Taiwan.” Adopting a two-pronged approach and transdisciplinary learning as its educational philosophy, the institute aims to encourage students to utilize new technological media and techniques or scientific phenomena in creating techno-art installations. In terms of curriculum design, the institute follows the guideline of “learning by doing” from the Techno Art Group, Interdisciplinary Program of Technology and Art, thereby embodying the spirit of “laying equal stress on theory and practice.” Apart from shaping students’ holistic personality, the institute also emphasizes professional training in practical skills. Revolving around the “promotion of innovative research and creative energy,” the curriculum of the institute foregrounds the “practicality” and “criticality” of techno art. It requires students to apply the theoretical principles they’ve learned to related textual, aesthetic, and industrial studies, so as to complement and boost the research energy of the Interdisciplinary Program of Technology and Art. Specifically speaking, the institute extends and deepens the research agenda of the department, treating “techno art” as the point of departure to establish a curricular structure that features the “convergence of two levels and two axes,” and setting great store by practical applications of knowledge, creativity, and humanistic concern for society. The curricular structure of the institute is elaborated below:

1. The two levels of the curricular structure

The mission and curricular design of this institute are characterized by a special focus on “techno art” at both theoretical and practical levels, namely “Basic Critical Thinking Training” and “Advanced Research on Specialized Practice.” In terms of “Basic Critical Thinking Training,” the institute currently offers courses on theories and methodologies concerning history, humanities, aesthetics, and technology, such as “Digital Aesthetics,” “Methods of Creative Practice,” “Research Theories and Methods,” and “Introduction to Technological Culture.” With these courses as the basic training, students will be able to gain a better understanding of techno art-related issues and be equipped with flexibly applicable abilities before embarking on more specialized creative ventures or research.

2. The two axes of specialization

In terms of “Advanced Research on Specialized Practice,” the institute treats “Virtual Innovative Technology” and “Biotech Art” as the two main axes. The former responds to the trend of digital convergence and the development of innovative technologies, aiming to open up “transdisciplinary” and “trans-media” horizons for students. The institute has designed a distinctive series of professional courses on the basis of the faculty’s expertise, such as “Virtual Art and Aesthetics,” “Construction of the Virtual Body,” and “Consciousness Uploading.” We will provide more courses that embody the zeitgeist. Besides, the axis of “Biotech Art” comprises three major areas: “BioArt,” “Bionic Art,” and “Artificial Life Art,” including the courses such as “BioArt and Scientific Progress,” “BioArt and Bioethics,” “Parametric Design,” “Kinetic and Generative Installations,” and “Artificial Life and Embodied Interaction Art.” Meanwhile, the curricular structure is also based on the serial courses of “applications of innovative technologies” that run through all the modules of techno-art practice, expecting to cultivate students’ techno-art professionalism concerning creative genres and the biotechnological media industry. Starting from contemporary global issues such as technology, industry, new media, and digital content, these courses keep abreast of the latest trends and respond to the innovation-seeking characteristic of techno art. They not only provide students with forward-looking, specialized transdisciplinary knowledge, but also enhance the training in research and creative thinking as well as the cultivation of diverse perspectives.

3. The achievement of flexible and integrated thinking

The curricular design culminates in “Transdisciplinary Studio Practice Project” and “Creative Thesis Writing” that mark the results of students’ application of knowledge and flexible thinking. Based on the aforementioned introductory and advanced courses, we guide students to master the subjects with creativity and criticality, so that they can develop innovative research with local insights. Besides, we pool the university’s research resources to blaze a trail in tackling transdisciplinary issues about diverse ethnic groups and innovative practice, so as to pursue the institute’s educational objective of “gearing to international standards” in a transdisciplinary, trans-media fashion based on the distinguishing feature of the local context. The final results that our students yield will fulfill the purpose of the institute and channel new energy into the realm of techno art in Taiwan, hence innovative perspectives that reflect the latest trends of the times.