1. Cultural background for the elaboration of curriculums in Art and Design in Kenya:  

• Relation between Diploma and Undergraduate levels in Kenyan higher education  

In Kenya, after graduating high school and passing final exams, students may start university education on the undergraduate level if their grades were high. Then, the government allocates them for a course at university matching preferences of their topic of study – if not their exact choice of university – and assures them a student’s credit. If their grades were mediocre but they want to study, pupils must begin at the Diploma level, which is three years at universities. After graduating with a Diploma, one may either go into the work market or follow a university education on the Undergraduate level for four more years.  

• Marginalization of art education at universities in Kenya  

In Kenya there is little consciousness of the importance of art and culture, which is reflected in the university education in the country as only a few universities offer some artistic courses or programmes. The most developed programmes in different fields of arts are at Kenyatta University in Nairobi, where until recently (the end of 2022) the School of Creative and Performing Arts, Film, and Media Studies, had four departments in Dance and Music, Film and Media, Fine Arts, and Fashion and Design. Now, due to the restructuring realized by the current Vice-Chancellor of Kenyatta University, the four artistic departments are part of a huge School of Law, Arts, and Humanities, where art is not much focused on. So far Fine Arts have been taught on the university level at Kenyatta University, while Design is taught also at the University of Nairobi. On the Kenyan coast there was no art education at the university level, until starting the courses in Art & Design at Pwani University in Kilifi on Diploma and Undergraduate levels. Technical University in Mombasa also is strengthening this area of education, supporting art and media workshops with professionals for their students. These recent changes are the effect of the TPAAE project.  

• Focus on African art in global perspective by the international and interdisciplinary team that prepared curriculums in Art and Design at Pwani University, Kenya  

The international and interdisciplinary TPAAE team working on the preparation of the Curriculums in Art and Design to be implemented at Pwani University in Kilifi contained researchers from: Pwani University (Kenya), Kenyatta University (Kenya), University in Macerata (Italy), and Academy of Art in Szczecin (Poland).  

The team was focused on creating the Curriculums in Art and Design to be implemented at Pwani University in Kilifi in such a way that they can compete with the programmes offered at Kenyatta University in Nairobi, by having specific focus on contemporary art, emphasizing African identity, while aware of the global art scene too.