Hokkaido College of Art & Design(美専学園 北海道芸術デザイン専門学校,Bisen Gakuen Hokkaidō Geijutsu Dezain Senmon Gakkō), or Bisen for short (ビセン), is an art school located in Kita-ku, Sapporo, Hokkaido, Japan, which was established in 1961.
1961 - Shirayuki Institute of Arts (Shirayuki Bijyutsu Kenkyusho in Japanese) was established in Nishi-ku, Sapporo. Shirayuki stands for White Snow.
1966 - Shirayuki Institute of Arts moved to Kita-ku, Sapporo and it was renamed Hokkaido Art School (Hokkaido Bijyutsu Gakko in Japanese).
1976 - Hokkaido Art School was renamed Hokkaido College of Comprehensive Arts (Hokkaido Sogo Bijyutsu Senmon Gakko in Japanese).
1983 - The International Exchange Program started with the Emily Carr University of Art and Design in Canada. Douglas Coupland came as the first exchange student.
1991 - The International Exchange Program started with Plymouth University in England.
1992 - Douglas Coupland, the first student of the international exchange programs, published a book "Generation X." This book became very popular, selling 100,000 copies in United States. Also, Isao Yamada, who belongs to the fifth consecutive graduating year, was praised for his film "I've Heard the Ammonite Murmur" among independent films at the Cannes Film Festival.
1994 - Hokkaido College of Comprehensive Arts took part in an event of the International Association of Independent Art and Design Schools (AIAS), which was held in Paris, and became a member.
1996 - Hokkaido College of Comprehensive Arts was renamed Hokkaido College of Art and Design. Also, the International Exchange Program started with Capilano University in Canada.
Faculties
Specialist Courses (Daytime)
Department of Industrial Design
Graphic Design Course
Illustration Course
Department of Multimedia Design
CG・Web Design Course
Animation・Game Creator Course
Department of Environmental Design
Interior Design Course
Interior Coordination Course
Craft Design Course
Flower Design Course
Department of Architectural Design
The Second-Class Registered Architect Course
House and Shop Design Course
General Courses (Nighttime)
Department of Comprehensive Design and Modeling
Fine Art Course
Graphic Design Course
Illustration Course
CG・Web Design Course
Comprehensive Interior Design Course
Sister schools
Capilano University
Emily Carr University of Art and Design
Plymouth University
Hokkaido College of Radiology & Pharmacy
Notable alumni and alumna
Manga Artist
Akiko Monden
Masaaki Nakayama
Yuji Iwahara
Karuho Shiina
Masasumi Kakizaki
Yuki Ota
Illustrator
Masami Nishimura
Yoshikatsu Kuriyama
Suzuki Yasushi
Kurando Ikeda
Umiu-Geso
Shiori Matsuura
Art Director
Eiji Sakagawa
Kenji Yamamoto
Ryohei Kudo (Wabi-Sabi)
Naoki Fujita
Junya Kamata
Film Director
Isao Yamada
Picture Book Author
Mari Kasai
Fine Artist
Toshiya Kobayashi
Kenji Nagahama
Yumiko Kayukawa
Novelist & Artist
Douglas Coupland (an exchange student from Emily Carr University of Art and Design in 1983)
