The University has introduced a program of social engagement as part of its research in graduate school art education, launching a project known as the Ueno Town Art Museum, or "UTM," in which the students devise a plan to revitalize the town in collaboration with the community.

In many courses in the Faculty of Fine Arts, students have already been involved in a wide range of unique projects, joining in a number of activities outside the University. UTM has integrated a variety of joint activities involving local residents, the municipal administration, and various civic groups. Activities have included workshops, open lectures, technical research into traditional arts and crafts, and research in the local culture. During the one-year period of this ambitious project, a wide variety of art programs and activities were carried out throughout Taito Ward, in effect turning the entire town into an art museum.

In one of the projects, students majoring in metal curving and casting developed new products through exchanges with traditional craftsmen in the Ward, blending traditional skills with the fresh sensibility of the young artists.

The students planned workshops to which local craftsmen were invited, generating leather crafts, tortoiseshell goods, traditional paper lanterns, Paulownia chests of drawers, and more. These activities gave form to ideas students gleaned from a variety of traditional craftwork available in their own neighborhood. Specific products included jewelry made from gold leaf sandwiched between tortoiseshell layers, the translucent shell lending a subdued hue to the gold. An outfit made from a sudare bamboo blind presented a delicate, functional beauty. A lampshade made of traditional hake brush material added a gentle nuance to the lamp's light. Although the students were at first stymied these unfamiliar materials and techniques, in the end they made an impressive array of novel works. This project is scheduled to run for three years.