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Teaching
The School teaches the sumi-e painting method of the internationally recognized Master Beppe Mokuza (see a biography of teachers). Sumi-e is the traditional Japanese ink painting; the Japanese word “sumi” means black ink, and “e” means painting (see a presentation of sumi-e).
Audience
In the case of the professional curriculum
The School is open to everybody; it is particularly intended for people who wish to become sumi-e teachers, to those who seek to deepen their personal practice, to artists who desire to acquire new skills, in a 4 year long curriculum. It should be noted that there is no provision for validation of acquired experience, equivalence or certification of part of the skills.
For those looking to return to work quickly, it is possible to take a short two-year training course, at least initially, to become a sumi-e workshop instructor. See here for more information.
In addition to the traditional outlets offered by the French Ministry of Education and the local civil service, teachers can also work as service providers or employees of cultural centers or local cultural associations, and/or as freelancers organizing evening classes and internships. These activities can be carried out in a variety of ways: as a self-employed contractor, as an association employee or service provider, as a cultural center employee, etc.
Artist-teachers can sell their original works and related products.
In the case of leisure practice, in particular the continuation of the “Encre Poétique” (Poetic Ink)
The school is open to everyone, including sumi-e beginners and people with no previous experience in the Visual Arts. Leisure classes are shared with professional classes. It is enriching to share experiences, the beginners will have a better understanding of their future skills by watching the students practicing, and the latter will be able to supervise the practice of the beginners as a teaching opportunity.
About People with Disabilities
The School strives to include all persons in its activities, in accordance with the French law of February 11, 2005 for “equal rights and opportunities, participation and citizenship of disabled persons”.
People with missing upper limbs or hands, severe motor and sensory deficits of the upper limbs, hands, torso and head cannot be admitted to the course, as well as people who are blind or have a severe visual deficit.
The sumi-e painting method requires a precise body posture, with the pelvis tilted forward, the shoulders clear and the back straight, ideally standing (to develop body awareness) in front of a high horizontal table, but it is possible to practice sitting down while preserving the essential elements of the posture.
Mental deficits should not affect the interpersonal relationship between teacher and student, which is the basis for the transmission of sumi-e practice.
It is possible to welcome people with learning and language deficits (because sumi-e teaching is practical and oral), and/or deficits that lead to difficulties in integrating in a group, lack of attention or coordination of movements. The practice of sumi-e can help these people to reduce the impact of these deficits.
A rest area is provided for people who are subject to great fatigue due to their disability.
Program
The teaching is given during seminars, which represent up to more than 200 hours a year (see the detailed program). The practice is based on a set of models designed specifically for progression over the duration of the curriculum. A cycle of theoretical courses allows approaching all the roots of sumi-e: historical, philosophical, cultural … as well as technical points.
Leisure time participants can register for a fraction of each seminar, either 1 to 10 half-days of their choice in Versailles, or the weekend, within the time frame of each seminar.
Individualizing
To take into account the remoteness of the trainees, school year 2023-2024 still favors long seminar formats, and to facilitate the integration of training into personal life, trainees can choose the workshop they attend among those offered. Training credits are allocated for each course attended, the end-of-year exam can be taken when the accumulated credits correspond to the set of required skills. The duration of training is therefore individualized.
As the program is common to all students, while everyone is at a very different point in his/her path, an individual support program is part of the curriculum, to support the effort of personal practice between two seminars (see the individual support program). 30 hours per year of follow-up are allocated to each student.
Despite the specificities described above, the seminars are open to everybody. As an unregistered student, it is possible to attend only some of the seminars (see the registration procedure).
Declaration of activity registered under number 11788438278 with the Ile-de-France regional prefect.
The International School of Sumi-e is a professional training organization that meets the quality criteria of the decree of June 30, 2015, and therefore can be referenced by funders of continuing professional training.
ACTIONS DE FORMATION
The activity of the International School of Sumi-e is certified to be in compliance with:
- the national reference system on the quality of actions contributing to the development of skills of the decrees: no 2019-565 of June 6, 2019 (articles 1 and 3) and no 2019-564 of June 6, 2019 on the quality of vocational training actions (article 1) ;
- the order of June 6, 2019 on the audit procedures associated with the national reference system mentioned in Article D. 6316-1-1 of the Labor Code.
