CAA News Today

The year 2011 marks the College Art Association’s one-hundredth anniversary, a celebratory landmark for any organization but particularly so given CAA’s dynamic influence in shaping the study and practice of the visual arts. Without dedicated members like you, CAA would not be where it is today. You can continue demonstrating your loyal support with a contribution to the new Centennial Campaign, which begins this week.

Since 1911, CAA has led many progressive developments in the art and academic worlds. In the 1920s, the organization helped establish art history as a legitimate subject in the humanities, and during the Great Depression it was instrumental in the Federal Arts Project of the Works Progress Administration. A 1960s statement declaring the MFA as the terminal degree for artists led to a robust Standards and Guidelines program in the next decade, and the Culture Wars of the 1980s and 1990s spurred CAA to take a firm stance supporting the First Amendment. The past ten years have been the busiest, with a small, dedicated staff administering a wide range of programs—from book grants and graduate-student fellowships to intellectual-property assistance and advocacy for contingent faculty—while continuing to publish distinguished journals and produce the largest international conference in the visual arts.

The Centennial is a time to think about CAA’s future. Earlier this year, the Board of Directors unveiled a new strategic plan, based on feedback from members, that identifies core goals and objectives for the next five years. Priorities include increasing support to artists, bringing designers into our circle, enhancing international outreach, and stepping up advocacy efforts—all of which allows the organization to strengthen its vital presence throughout the field.

CAA will kick off its Centennial celebration in New York at the 99th Annual Conference, to be held February 9–12, 2011. A variety of programs and events will complement the usual conference format, including a special awards ceremony and reception at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, a public-art project in Times Square, sessions that bring together well-known figures for passionate cross-disciplinary exchange, and a toast to CAA’s anniversary at the Annual Members’ Business Meeting.

CAA remains dedicated to serving professionals and students in the visual arts, but it needs your assistance. Contributions to the Centennial Campaign at every level make a difference; they are also fully tax deductible. Your gift will not only sustain the organization now, but it will also help guarantee CAA’s leadership for the next one hundred years.