This new application process constitutes the Arts Department’s refreshed commitment to our mission as described by Ikeda Sensei in The New Human Revolution, vol. 13:
1. To be people with a great “inner determination to experience joy through suffering” and who crystallize this great joy in their art,
2. To be “people who have resolutely faced their karma and overcome their sufferings, and who are working hard for kosen-rufu in order to realize peace and happiness for their friends,”
3. To be artists who can collaborate with anyone, actualizing the spirit of “Many in Body, One in Mind” in their local SGI-USA organizations and in their professional fields, and
4. To be artists who gain trust in their fields by exhibiting mastery in their art and a spirit to foster the next generation.
Those wishing to be a member of the Arts Department are requested to fill out this application. Please do not be intimidated by the short essay form; write from the heart. At some time, every type of artist must write about themselves and their work. Please think of this as a brief experience you can’t wait to encourage your fellow district members with! With this in mind, we ask that there be no use of AI in your application.
We also request that you kindly include descriptions and/or links to works you have created in the course of your professional career as an artist. Note that the intent of this is in no way to judge the “quality” of the art – rather, just to confirm that the applicant is a professional artist or a serious student.