It is a part of the Hogeschool Gent, a Belgium University college.
The Academy was founded in 1748 as a school for drawing by the painter, Philippe Karel Marissal, at his home.
[1] During his studies in Paris, Marissal had become impressed by the Académie royale de peinture et de sculpture, and was inspired to create a similar establishment in his home city.
[1] The Academy was granted a royal charter in 1771 by empress Maria Theresa of Austria.
[citation needed] In 1995, the Academy was one of the sixteen educational institutions that were merged into the Hogeschool Gent.