The spirit of the founding of Tokyo Zokei University

Tokyo Zokei University (TZU) was founded in 1966 by Yoko Kuwasawa and her supporters.
In her book published for the tenth anniversary of the university, she wrote as follows: “The idea of establishing the university occurred to me on the tenth anniversary of Kuwasawa Design School.
The progress of Kuwasawa Design Research Institute inspired me to create a university where various problems concerning design directly connected to human life can be investigated. It was also my hope that the new institution would involve general education including basic cultural, social and natural sciences, and that a kind of applied science, i.e., the theory of Zokei, a broader concept of design and fine arts, would be researched and be established.”
“The idea was interdisciplinary. At the same time, I had a strong desire to elucidate the essence of modern Zokei by pursing the connection between Zokei and pure art.” The spirit of the founding of TZU is based on Yoko Kuwasawa’s educational ideas, i.e., clarification of the meaning of modern Zokei and establishment of the theory of Zokei based on a synthetic viewpoint, which can be recognized in her activities as a designer. In other words, Yoko Kuwasawa herself is the symbol of the spirit of the university and the basis of its educational ideas.