AKI ArtEZ Academy of Art & Design

The strength of AKI ArtEZ lies in the combination of personal attention, artistic freedom, and high quality. Students and lecturers from different disciplines and cultures form an international community, firmly connected to the region and to the professional art and design world. 60% of our students come from all over the world.
AKI is a small-scale art academy with a close-knit community. You are never anonymous here, and you receive all the room for your own creative development. This translates into a ratio between lecturers and students that many other programmes cannot match, and into attention for personal growth during regular feedback sessions.

The open and multicultural atmosphere of AKI creates an ideal environment to be yourself and to exchange ideas and experiences with others. Far away from a 'pressure cooker' environment or educational models that fuel mutual competition, AKI offers ample space, time, and opportunities to chart your own creative path and enter into collaborations with others.

The network of AKI ArtEZ is part of a cultural landscape that includes Rijksmuseum Twenthe, TETEM, the University of Twente, and Concordia. In addition, we collaborate with partners in the graphic, technological, and visual sectors, and have an extensive national and international alumni network.

Students enter directly into our study programmes, without first following a general foundation (propedeuse) year. As a result, students gain an extra well-earned year within their field of study, fully focused on Fine Art, Crossmedia Design, or Moving Image. This leads to experienced graduates with a well-developed oeuvre and better career perspectives.

With ten city parks and green spaces comprising about half of the urban surface, Enschede is known as the greenest city in the Netherlands. Thanks to the large student population and countless cultural events and festivals, Enschede has a rich offering of bars and restaurants and a bustling nightlife.

AKI is located outside the Randstad, in a region with a strong underground and DIY culture. The academy connects seamlessly with the no-nonsense mentality of the lively art scene in Enschede, a city with a long tradition of hosting artists, curators, and cultural professionals. Half the population are students, and the whole city is geared towards that.