Kamagasaki Univercity of Arts

Kamagasaki University of Arts (or KAMAGEI) was launched in Kamagasaki, Nishinari-ku, Osaka City in 2012. The art NPO Koe to Kotoba to Kokoro no Heya (The Room of Voice, Words, and Heart) “Cocoroom” runs KAMAGEI. With the motto “if there are people who want to learn from each other, that's a university,” the Cocoroom regards the whole town of Kamagasaki as a university. KAMAGEI has been developed as a relaxing friendly project with using various local facilities as venues. Approximately 100 courses including astronomy, philosophy, and aesthetics are offered annually. In recent years, due to the aging of the people living in Kamagasaki, KAMAGEI continues its activities as “a place of meeting and expression,” while it also focuses on memorization and archiving the life of Kamagasaki people. KAMAGEI conducts arranged courses at local high schools and junior high schools nearby as well as collaborated courses with Osaka University. Major exhibitions and performances: Yokohama Triennale 2014 (Kanagawa), “Forest of Expression” (Arts Maebashi, Gunma, 2016), “BIRD” Theatre Festival TOTTORI 9 (2016), “Come on, KAMAGEI!” (Ooka Makoto Kotoba Museum, Shizuoka, 2017), “This place is a good town to live. -Everyday of Kamagasaki University of Arts” (Runbinii Museum, Iwate, 2018), etc.