CAA News Today
Announcing the 2020 Awards for Distinction Recipients
posted by CAA — Feb 04, 2020
Honorees this year include Eleanor Antin, Joseph Leo Koerner, Maud K. Lavin, Annet Couwenberg, Harriet Senie, Kyle Staver, and many other scholars, artists, and teachers
CAA Annual Conference, Chicago, February 12-15, 2020
![](https://www.collegeart.org/news/wp-content//Antin_web-300x233.jpg)
Eleanor Antin
We are pleased to announce the recipients and finalists of the 2020 CAA Awards for Distinction. Among the winners this year is Eleanor Antin, recipient of the 2020 Distinguished Artist Award for Lifetime Achievement. Born in the Bronx in 1935 to immigrant parents, Antin is an innovator and pioneer as a feminist artist, a performance and installation artist, a conceptual artist, filmmaker, and writer. She is an emeritus Professor of Visual Arts at the University of California, San Diego and author of several books including An Artist’s Life by Eleonora Antinova and Conversations with Stalin. Antin’s solo museum exhibitions have appeared at the MoMA, the Whitney Museum, and, in 2019, the Los Angeles County Museum of Art with her retrospective, Eleanor Antin: Time’s Arrow. Her awards include a Guggenheim Fellowship and a 2006 Women’s Caucus for Art Lifetime Achievement Award.
![](https://www.collegeart.org/news/wp-content//Koerner_web-300x201.jpg)
Joseph Leo Koerner
Joseph Leo Koerner is the recipient of the 2020 Distinguished Lifetime Achievement Award for Writing on Art. His achievements include four landmark books on sixteenth-century paintings: The Moment of Self-Portraiture in German Renaissance Art (University of Chicago Press, 1993), The Moment of Self-Portraiture in German Renaissance Art (University of Chicago Press, 2003), The Reformation of the Image (Reaktion Books, 2004), and Bosch and Bruegel: From Enemy Painting to Everyday Life (Princeton University Press, 2016). Koerner has also written widely on more recent artists, from Caspar David Friedrich to Paul Klee, and explored early-twentieth century Vienna through a documentary project and a semi-autobiographical film.
![](https://www.collegeart.org/news/wp-content//Maud-Lavin_web-300x200.jpg)
Maud K. Lavin
Dr. Maud K. Lavin is the recipient of the 2020 Distinguished Feminist Award for scholarship. Over the course of three decades, Lavin has worked tirelessly as a key pioneer in the field of feminist art history and visual studies. She is the author of numerous books including the first English-language book on Berlin Dada artist Hannah Hoch, Cut with the Kitchen Knife: The Weimar Photomontages of Hannah Hoch (Yale University Press, 1993), and most recently, Boys’ Love, Cosplay, and Androgynous Idols: Queer Fan Cultures in Mainland China, Hong Kong, and Taiwan, co-edited with Ling Yang and Jamie Zhao (Hong Kong University Press, 2017). She is a professor of Visual and Critical Studies and Art History, Theory, and Criticism at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago.
The Awards for Distinction will be presented during Convocation at the CAA Annual Conference on Wednesday, February 12 at 6:00 PM at the Hilton Chicago. This event is free and open to the public.
The full list of 2020 CAA Awards for Distinction Recipients
Distinguished Artist Award for Lifetime Achievement
Eleanor Antin
Distinguished Lifetime Achievement Award for Writing on Art
Joseph Leo Koerner
Distinguished Feminist Award—Scholar
Maud K. Lavin
Distinguished Teaching of Art Award
Annet Couwenberg
Distinguished Teaching of Art History Award
Harriet Senie
Artist Award for Distinguished Body of Work
Kyle Staver
CAA/AIC Award for Distinction in Scholarship and Conservation
Jeanne Marie Teutonico
Award for Excellence in Diversity
3Arts
Outstanding Leadership in Philanthropy Award
Terra Foundation for American Art
Charles Rufus Morey Book Award
J. P. Park
A New Middle Kingdom: Painting and Cultural Politics in Late Chosŏn Korea (1700–1850)
University of Washington Press, 2018
Finalists
Chanchal B. Dadlani
From Stone to Paper: Architecture as History in the Late Mughul Empire
Yale University Press, 2019
Barbara Furlotti
Antiquities in Motion: From Excavation Sites to Renaissance Collections
Getty Publications, 2019
Matthew Looper
The Beast Between: Deer in Maya Art and Culture
University of Texas Press, 2019
Alfred H. Barr Jr. Award
Karl Kusserow and Alan C. Braddock
Nature’s Nation: American Art and Environment
Princeton University Art Museum, 2019
with contributions by Miranda Belarde-Lewis, Teddy Cruz, Rachael Z. DeLue, Mark Dion, Fonna Forman, Laura Turner Igoe, Robin Kelsey, Anne McClintock, Timothy Morton, Rob Nixon, Jeffrey Richmond-Moll, Kimia Shahi, and Jaune Quick-to-See-Smith
Honorable Mention
Esther Gabara
Pop América, 1965–1975
Duke University Press, 2018
Finalists
Cathleen Chaffee
Introducing Tony Conrad: A Retrospective
Albright-Knox Art Gallery, Buffalo, NY, in association with Koenig Books, London, 2019
Jessica Morgan and Alexis Lowry
Charlotte Posenenske: Work in Progress
Dia Art Foundation and Walther König, 2019
Elizabeth Morrison
Book of Beasts: The Bestiary in the Medieval World
Getty Publications, 2019
Alfred H. Barr Jr. Award for Smaller Museums, Libraries, Collections, and Exhibitions
Denise Murrell
Posing Modernity: The Black Model from Manet and Matisse to Today
Yale University Press in association with The Miriam and Ira D. Wallach Art Gallery, Columbia
University in the City of New York, 2018
Honorable Mention
Phillip Earenfight
Shan Goshorn: Resisting the Mission
Trout Gallery, Dickinson College, 2019
Finalists
Tracy L. Adler
Jeffery Gibson: This is The Day
Prestel Publishing, 2018
Faith Brower, Heather Ahtone, and Seth Hopkins
Warhol and the West
University of California Press, 2019
Frank Jewett Mather Award for Art Criticism
Darby English
To Describe a Life: Notes from the Intersection of Art and Race Terror
Yale University Press, 2019
Art Journal Award
Philip Glahn and Cary Levine
“The Future Is Present: Electronic Café and the Politics of Technological Fantasy”
Art Journal, vol. 78, no. 3 (Fall 2019): 100–121
Arthur Kingsley Porter Prize
Claudia Brittenham
“Architecture, Vision, and Ritual: Seeing Maya Lintels at Yaxchilan Structure 23″
The Art Bulletin, vol. 101, no. 3 (September 2019): 8–36
Learn about the juries that select the recipients of the CAA Awards for Distinction.
RAAMP Coffee Gathering: Differentiating Visual Arts Admin and Museum Studies Programs
posted by CAA — Jan 16, 2020
Coffee Gathering: Differentiating Visual Arts Administration and Museum Studies Programs
On Thursday, February 6 at 2pm (EST) we will be online with Bruce J. Altshuler, Director and Professor of Museum Studies at New York University and Sandra Lang, Director and Professor of Visual Arts Administration at New York University to discuss their respective programs. Joining them will be Visual Arts Administration student Laura Busby and Museum Studies student Olivia Knauss.
For participant bios, see the full post on RAAMP.
To join this Coffee Gathering, please email Cali Buckley at cbuckley@collegeart.org.
RAAMP Coffee Gatherings are monthly virtual chats aimed at giving participants an opportunity to informally discuss a topic that relates to their work as academic art museum professionals. Learn more here.
Submit to RAAMP
RAAMP (Resources for Academic Art Museum Professionals) aims to strengthen the educational mission of academic art museums by providing a publicly accessible repository of resources, online forums, and relevant news and information. Visit RAAMP to discover the newest resources and contribute.
RAAMP is a project of CAA with support from the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation and the Samuel H. Kress Foundation.
News from the Art and Academic Worlds
posted by CAA — Jan 15, 2020
![](https://www.collegeart.org/news/wp-content//Lifetimes-1024x857-1-1024x857.jpg)
Mario Moore, Several Lifetimes, 2019. Courtesy of the artist.
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News from the Art and Academic Worlds
posted by CAA — Jan 08, 2020
![](https://www.collegeart.org/news/wp-content//GettyImages-860929710-1024x683-300x200.jpg)
The archaelogical site and ruins of gates and columns of the Persian Achaemenid dynasty ancient capital city of Persepolis. Photo by Nicolas Economou/NurPhoto via Getty Images, via artnet News
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Affiliated Society News for January 2020
posted by CAA — Jan 07, 2020
Happy New Year! Affiliated Society News shares the new and exciting things CAA’s affiliated organizations are working on including activities, awards, publications, conferences, and exhibitions. See January’s news below.
Interested in becoming an Affiliated Society? Learn more here.
Community College Professors of Art and Art History
Please join the Community College Professors of Art and Art History at this year’s CAA Conference in Chicago for two events on Wednesday, February 12, 2020.
From 12:30 PM – 1:30 PM in the Lobby Level Continental B room, join us for our annual Business meeting and project share. Bring an idea or project to share with your community college colleagues. Following our business meeting (in the same room) is our session, Taking a New Look: Creating Change in the Studio and Art History Classrooms. Co-Chaired by Susan Altman and Monica Anke Hahn, hear Richard J. Moninski, Tyrus R. Clutter, Rachael Bower and Ross McClain talk about creating meaningful change in their studio and art history programs.
Women’s Caucus for Art
Thursday, February 13, 12:30pm: book presentation and discussion of Inappropriate Bodies: Art, Design, and Maternity, with editors Rachel Epp Buller and Charles Reeve and contributor Niku Kashef
Thursday, February 13, 6:00pm: WCA/CAA panel on Amplifying Inclusion: Intersectional Feminism in Contemporary Curatorial Practice, with presenters Tanya Augsburg, Priscilla Otani, Karen Gutfreund, and Rosemary Meza-DesPlas, with discussant Maria Buszek.
CAA members are also invited to attend WCA exhibitions in Chicago. The Young Women’s Caucus organized Intersectional History at WomanMade Gallery and the National WCA exhibition, Collectively Shifting, is hosted by The Bridgeport Art Center.
New Media Caucus
The New Media Caucus is happy to welcome the following continuing and new board members following a successful 2019-2020 Election Cycle.
Chair of Communication Committee
KT Duffy
Assistant Professor of Art, Northeastern Illinois University
Board Members
Farhad Bayram
Assistant Professor, Indiana State University
Victoria Bradbury
Assistant Professor, The University of North Carolina – Asheville
Meredith Drum
Assistant Professor, School of Visual Arts, Virginia Tech
Zach Duer
Assistant Professor, School of Visual Arts, Virginia Tech
Sue Huang
Assistant Professor, University of Connecticut
Chelsea Thompo
Visiting Professor, Grand Valley State University
The New Media Caucus (NMC) is a 501c3 dedicated to supporting artists and scholars engaged in new media art. More information about the NMC and our mission can be found at newmediacaucus.org.
Society for the History of Collecting
We are looking forward to our debut sessions at CAA in February and will be using our inaugural business meeting to host a conversation about opportunities for research and funding in the field (the Friday lunchtime slot).
We are also excited to announce that the Americas chapter is expanding with Sophia McCabe spearheading a West Coast initiative.
In NY our upcoming events include a curatorial walk-through with Inés Katzenstein of Sur moderno at MoMA (January 8) and a collaboration with Master Drawings New York on Saturday, January 25. Talking Drawings—a conversation amongst four women collectors of works on paper will be moderated by Dr Jennifer Tonkovich of The Morgan Library & Museum. More information can be found here.
Society of Architectural Historians
Are you planning to attend the College Art Association Annual Conference in Chicago? If so, please join SAH’s conversation about two of our most exciting current initiatives, SAH Archipedia and the SAH Data Project, at the SAH Business Meeting on Wednesday, February 12, 12:30–1:30 pm. Pauline Saliga, SAH Executive Director, will discuss the recent launch of SAH Archipedia. This growing, open-access, mobile-friendly online resource will soon provide new opportunities to publish interpretive research about the history of the built environment. Sarah M. Dreller, SAH Postdoctoral Researcher in the Humanities, will answer questions about the purpose, scope, and timeline of the SAH Data Project, a Mellon-funded study that is assessing the status of the field of architectural history in higher education. The project will launch a key component of the data-gathering effort, online surveys for students, faculty, and program chairs/administrators, right before the CAA Annual Conference.
Early Registration is open for the SAH 2020 Annual International Conference in Seattle, Washington, April 29–May 3. Nearly 700 SAH members from around the world are expected to convene at the Renaissance Seattle Hotel to present new research on the history of the built environment, network, and participate in roundtables, seminars, workshops, tours and more. Early registration closes March 3, 2020.
SAH will offer a total of 36 paper sessions at its 2021 Annual International Conference in Montréal, Québec, Canada. The Society invites individuals and those representing SAH chapters and partner organizations to submit a session proposal for the Montréal conference. Since the principal purpose of the SAH annual conference is to inform attendees of the general state of research in architectural history and related disciplines, session proposals covering every time period and all aspects of the built environment, including landscape and urban history, are encouraged. The submission deadline is January 14, 2020.
Visual Resources Association
The Visual Resources Association (VRA) has planned two events for the 2020 Chicago conference and we welcome CAA conference attendees to join us for a full session and open business meeting turned interactive forum.
Both events take place on Wednesday, February 12th, starting with a VRA Business Meeting scheduled midday (free and open to the public), which we have turned into a discussion forum opening with a presentation entitled “From Archive to Classroom: The Use of Omeka and Companion Tools in the Curation of Digital Stories and Exhibits” involving Matt Taylor, Director of the Media and Design Studio, and Rebecca Zorach, Mary Jane Crowe Professor of Art and Art History, as well as their students from Northwestern University. It will be followed by what will surely be an engaging discussion about online exhibitions and other current trends in the field of visual resources.
In the afternoon, a formal session has been organized entitled, “Hands-On to Eyes-On: From Material Collections to Digital Exhibitions“ chaired by Bridget Madden, Associate Director of the Visual Resources Center, in the Department of Art History at the University of Chicago. A distinguished panel of artists, art historians, librarians, museum and information professionals will discuss the hands-on use of materials and museum collections to allow students to apply their knowledge in real-life contexts (full slate below). The presenters will discuss: the use of a materials collection in teaching art history survey courses to studio art and design students; fashion and textile resources transitioning from physical to digital collections for enhanced access; and a two-term curatorial practice course sequenced to design and install a museum exhibition. In all cases, the collections used in teaching are prioritized and sustained, not treated as occasional visits or demonstrations. The role of professional staff supporting these collections and facilitating their use by faculty and students is integral. It will be shown how effective these collaborations can be, including how they can lead to more engaging, active learning experiences in the classroom. The session will take place at 4pm at the Hilton Chicago in the Wilford C room as follows:
1) “Materials in Context: Experiential Learning in Art History” at the Minneapolis College of Art and Design with Allan T. Kohl, Librarian in charge of Visual Resources and Library Instruction, presenting a collection curator’s perspective, partnered with Jessica M. Dandona, Associate Professor of Art History, providing a faculty perspective.
2) “Materiality Made Visible” will be presented by Melanie E. Emerson, Dean of the Library + Special Collections, from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago.
3) “Exhibition in Practice” at the Smart Museum of Art, University of Chicago, will be presented with Leslie Wilson, Curatorial Fellow for Diversity in the Arts, providing “A Perspective from the Classroom” and Berit Ness, Assistant Curator of Academic Initiatives, talking about “Execution in the Museum.”
The Visual Resources Association is a multidisciplinary organization dedicated to furthering research and education in the field of image management within the educational, cultural heritage, and commercial environments (http://vraweb.org/).
For additional information, please contact Maureen Burns, VRA CAA Affiliate Society Representative at moaburns@gmail.com.
Foundations in Art: Theory and Education (FATE)
There is a date change to the original announcement of the FATE Biennial Conference.
18th Biennial Foundations in Art: Theory and Education Conference will be hosted by University of North Carolina Charlotte. Mark your calendars for April 15-17, 2021 and make plans to be there!
Mid-America College Art Association
Invite for new prospective board members:
The Mid-America College Art Association is seeking motivated artists, and art faculty, to become members of an energetic team who provide avenues for fellowship in the arts on the collegiate level. All media are welcome, we give preference to artists that have expertise in Art Finance, Art Non-Profits, Graphic Design, Digital Arts, Art History, Art Administration and Art Therapy, Art Education, Art Interdisciplinary, Art Performance. Please send inquiry and letter of interest and CV to Heather Hertel, MACAA President: heather.hertel@sru.edu.
view our website: www.macaart.org Instagram: midamericacollegeartassoc
SECAC
SECAC 2019: 75th ANNUAL CONFERENCE
In October, SECAC met for the 75th time in Chattanooga, hosted by The University of Tennessee at Chattanooga. 672 members representing 330 institutions participated in 140 sessions. Highlights of the conference included a keynote address by Sharon Louden at the Hunter Museum of American Art, the 2018 SECAC Artist’s Fellowship Exhibition at the ConTemporary Cress Gallery,the SECAC Juried Exhibition, at Stove Works satellite gallery, and the SECAC Mentoring Program.
At the annual business meeting, SECAC President Sandra Reed of Marshall University introduced new members of the Board of Directors: Arkansas, Kevin Cates, University of Arkansas at Little Rock; Florida, Jeff Schwartz, Ringling College of Art and Design; Louisiana, Rachel Stephens, The University of Alabama; Mississippi, Elise Smith, Millsaps College; Tennessee, Christina Vogel, The University of Tennessee at Chattanooga; and At-Large Seat #1, Dennis Ichiyama. Also new to the board are Michael Borowski, Virginia Tech, representing Virginia, and Sunny Spillane, University of North Carolina at Greensboro, serving as an officer in the new role of Secretary.
SECAC 2020 will be hosted by Virginia Commonwealth University in Richmond, October 21–34. Regularly-updated information, and links to calls are published here. The SECAC submissions site is here.
AWARDS PRESENTED AT SECAC 2019
- The SECAC Artist’s Fellowship was awarded to Adrian Rhodes, University of South Carolina, for Blood and Honey.
- Yumi Park-Huntington, Framingham State University in Massachusetts, received the William R. Levin Award for Research in Art History Before 1750 for Monumental Structure, Sacred Landscape, and Cosmology at the Late Formative Period Peruvian Site of Jequetepeque-Jatanca.
- Stephen Mandravelis, The University of Tennessee at Chattanooga, received the William R. Levin Award for Research in Art History Since 1750 for Access to Avenues of Art: Mapping the Cultivation of Rural Art Markets through the American Agriculturalist, 1850-1880.
- The SECAC Award for Excellence in Teaching was presented to Jenny Hager, University of North Florida.
- The SECAC Award for Outstanding Exhibition and Catalog of Contemporary Materials was given to William U. Eiland for Clinton Hill, Georgia Museum of Art, 2018.
- The Georgia Museum of Art received the SECAC Award for Outstanding Exhibition and Catalog of Historical Materials for Crafting History: Textiles, Metals, and Ceramics at the University of Georgia.
- The 2019 SECAC Award for Outstanding Professional Achievement in Graphic Design was presented to Meena Khalili, University of Louisville.
- The 2019 SECAC Award for Excellence in Scholarly Research and Publication was awarded to Peter Scott Brown, University of North Florida, for The Riddle of Jael: The History of a Poxied Heroine in Medieval and Renaissance Art and Culture.
Visit SECAC Awards for details.
Twenty-two graduate students received Gulnar Bosch Travel Awards: Melissa Airy, University of Iowa; Olivia Armandroff, University of Delaware; Alyssa Bralower, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign; Lauren Cesiro, Binghamton University; Dominik Eckel, DFK Paris / University of Cologne; Isabel Fontbona Mola, University of Girona, Spain; Dilmar Mauricio Gamero Santos, Temple University; Naghmeh Hachempour, Georgia Southern University; Dana Hogan, Duke University; Julia Katz, Rutgers University-New Brunswick; Ximena Kilroe, CUNY; Julia Kirshaw, Florida State University; Tess McCoy, University of New Mexico; Melissa Miller, University of Arkansas at Little Rock; Jonathan Morgan, Institute for Doctoral Studies in the Visual Arts; Danielle Powell, University of Central Florida; Chris Slaby, College of William & Mary; Sara Anne Stepp, Univeristy of Kansas; Barbara Tyner, Centro de Cultura Casa Lamm, Mexico City; Marina Tyquiengco, University of Pittsburgh; Or Vallah, University of Washington; and Jennifer Vess, University of Iowa.
At the SECAC 2019 Annual Juried Exhibition, Juror Amelia Briggs, Director of David Lusk Gallery, awarded First Place to Anne Herbert, Alabama School of Fine Arts, for Event Horizon; Second Place: to Chung-Fan Chang, Stockton University, for Guangwu’s Land; Third Place to Natalie Harrison, Samford University, for Pastel Tapestry 1; and Honorable Mention to Mary Laube, The University of Tennessee, for Queen Min’s Hair. The Co-Directors’ Award was presented to Ann Moody, University at Buffalo, for Lickety-Split.
American Society of Appraisers
Upcoming educational offerings:
· February 3, 2020 | Fundamentals of Jewelry Appraisal | Tucson, AZ
· February 5, 2020 | Introduction to the Chinese Art Market, Challenges and Opportunities | Webinar
· March 2, 2020 | Fundamentals of Jewelry Appraisal | Carlsbad, CA
· March 16-17, 2020 | Appraising Fine Arts Overview | Chicago, IL
· March 20, 2020 | Personal Property Appraisal Report Writing Update | Reston, VA
· May 30-June 14, 2020 | 9th Annual Summer Appraisal Camp | Purchase, NY
· October 29, 2020 | The Decorative Art and Mechanics of Antique Clocks | Webinar
Historians of Netherlandish Art
CAA CONFERENCE CHICAGO, February 12-15th, 2020:
HNA RECEPTION: Friday, February 14th, between 5:30 and 7 pm. Private Dining Room 4, located on the third floor of the Hilton
HNA SESSION:
Thursday February 13th, 10:30-12:00 pm
Hilton Chicago – Lower Level – Salon C-5: 10
Historians of Netherlandish Art
Joanna Sheers Seidenstein, Harvard Art Museums and Sarah Walsh Mallory, Harvard University
SESSION run by HNA members:
Thursday, February 13th, 6:00-7;30 PM
Hilton Chicago – 3rd Floor – Wilford C
Re-Assessing the Northern European Male Nude
Martha Hollander, Hofstra University and Lisa Rosenthal, University Of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
JOURNAL OF THE HISTORIANS OF NETHERLANDISH ART:
JHNA has just published a special guest-edited issue on the art of Gerard de Lairesse (Winter 2020, vol. 12:1). The editors include Eric Jan Sluijter (University of Amsterdam Emeritus); Elmer Kolfin (University of Amsterdam); Jasper Hillegers (Salomon Lilian Gallery, Amsterdam); and Marrigje Rikken (Frans Hals Museum, Haarlem).
JHNA has received a grant from the Association of Research Institutes in Art History (ARIAH) to support the development of a hot spot feature for images in the article by Melanie Gifford on Rubens’s Fall of Phaeton, National Gallery of Art, Washington, which appeared in the Summer 2019 issue (vol. 11:2). Watch for this digital feature in Gifford’s essay in 2020 as well as in other essays to come.
News from the Art and Academic Worlds
posted by CAA — Dec 25, 2019
![](https://www.collegeart.org/news/wp-content//NYT-1-300x200.jpg)
The overhead entrance to the previously uncharted chamber in Indonesia, which houses cave art that dates back at least 43,900 years. Credit: Ratno Sardi for The New York Times
Mythical Beings May Be Earliest Imaginative Cave Art by HumansThe paintings found in central Indonesia—which are at least 43,900 years old—may shift an understanding of when and where humans started depicting imaginary figures. (New York Times)
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CAA Endorses ACASA’s Statement Concerning Destruction of Cultural Patrimony in Bafut
posted by CAA — Dec 16, 2019
![](https://www.collegeart.org/news/wp-content//201919africa_bafut_palace-300x225.jpg)
On September 24, soldiers from the Rapid Intervention Battalion (BIR) attacked and looted the Royal Palace, in Bafut, North-West region. © Creative Commons/ShareAlike 3.0, via Human Rights Watch
CAA endorses its affiliate society, the Arts Council of the African Studies Association (ACASA), in condemning recent reports of theft, property damage, as well as violence at the Palace of Bafut in Cameroon.
The site is an important part of the history and culture of the Bafut population in the northwest region of Cameroon, and continues to function as a center for religious rites and ceremonies. The violence and destruction to the Bafut Palace threatens the safety and identity of the Bafut people and the maintenance of their distinctive cultural traditions. As such it deserves protection from the Republic of Cameroon and pressure from organizations and governments to restore damaged structures and return stolen artifacts.
Read ACASA’s statement below.
Statement Concerning Destruction of Cultural Patrimony in Bafut
20 November 2019
The Arts Council of the African Studies Association (ACASA)—an independent professional association which exists to facilitate communication among scholars, teachers, students, artists, museum specialists, collectors, and all others interested in the arts of Africa and the African Diaspora—condemns the violent aggression perpetrated by the Republic of Cameroon against the Palace of Bafut, a site included on UNESCO’s Tentative List of World Heritage Sites since 2006. Human Rights Watch reports that “On September 24 [2019], soldiers from the Rapid Intervention Battalion (BIR) attacked and looted the Royal Palace in Bafut, North-West region.” (https://www.hrw.org/news/2019/10/11/world-heritage-site-attacked-cameroon#) Fon Abumbi II of Bafut protested the aggression in a letter dated September 24, 2019 and addressed to the Governor of North West Region. In addition to causing damage to buildings within the palace and perpetrating violence against those who had been neither charged nor tried in a court of law, these troops representing the authority of the State shamelessly stole historical objects from the palace museum.
According to the World Monuments Fund, the palace “embodies Bafut cultural identity and remains a center for religious rites and traditional ceremonies. Over 50 houses are clustered around the site’s spiritual core, Achum Shrine, and are used by the Fon (king), his wives, and the royal court.” (https://www.wmf.org/project/bafut-palace) The palaces and museums of the North West Region of Cameroon serve as invaluable repositories of the long-standing traditions and material cultures of these vibrant kingdoms. These palaces and associated sites—where ritual practices have long been performed—foster and house the heritages, both tangible and intangible of these communities. The violent destruction and looting of such a site may be understood as an attempt to erase the cultural identity of the Bafut population. As a site listed on the Tentative List of World Heritage Sites, Bafut Palace is recognized as holding even greater than just local significance, constituting a primary locus of cultural heritage for the entirety of Cameroon, and indeed the world. The Cameroonian State must treat these places as the internationally significant cultural heritage sites that they are.
ACASA calls on the Republic of Cameroon to protect sites of cultural heritage as required by being party to the 1954 Hague Convention for the Protection of Cultural Property. According to Article 4(3) of the aforementioned convention, it is the obligation of the State “to prohibit, prevent and, if necessary, put a story to any form of theft, pillage or misappropriation of, and any acts of vandalism directed against, cultural property….” In light of this international obligation, the Cameroonian State must bring to justice and punish appropriately those responsible for this heinous act. Furthermore, every effort must be taken to return looted items of cultural heritage to the palace museum of Bafut.
CC:
Paul Biya, President of the Republic of Cameroon
Henri Etoundi Essomba, Ambassador of the Republic of Cameroon to the US
Peter Henry Barlein, US Ambassador to the Republic of Cameroon
Narcisse Mouelle Kombi, Minister of Arts and Culture for the Republic of Cameroon
UNESCO
World Monuments Fund
https://www.acasaonline.org/3461-2/
Finalists for the 2020 Morey and Barr Awards
posted by CAA — Dec 09, 2019
CAA is pleased to announce the 2020 finalists for the Charles Rufus Morey Book Award and two Alfred H. Barr Jr. Awards. The winners of the three prizes, along with the recipients of other Awards for Distinction, will be announced in January 2020 and presented during Convocation in conjunction with CAA’s 108th Annual Conference, taking place in Chicago, February 12-15, 2020.
The Charles Rufus Morey Book Award Shortlist 2020
Matthew Looper, The Beast Between: Deer in Maya Art and Culture, University of Texas Press, 2019
Alfred H. Barr Jr. Award Shortlist 2020
Esther Gabara, Pop América, 1965-1975, Duke University Press, 2018
Elizabeth Morrison, Book of Beasts: The Bestiary in the Medieval World, Getty Publications, 2019
Alfred H. Barr Jr. Award for Smaller Museums, Libraries, Collections, and Exhibitions Shortlist 2020
Tracy L. Adler, Jeffery Gibson: This is The Day, Prestel Publishing, 2018
The presentation of the 2020 Awards for Distinction will take place during CAA Convocation on Wednesday evening, February 12, 2020 from 6-7:30 p.m. in the Grand Ballroom at the Hilton Chicago. The event is free and open to the public. For more information about CAA’s Awards for Distinction, please contact nyoffice@collegeart.org
Kevin Tervala and Jennifer Kingsley
posted by CAA — Dec 09, 2019
The weekly CAA Conversations Podcast continues the vibrant discussions initiated at our Annual Conference. Listen in each week as educators explore arts and pedagogy, tackling everything from the day-to-day grind to the big, universal questions of the field.
CAA podcasts are on iTunes. Click here to subscribe.
On this week’s podcast, a medievalist stumbles into an Africanist and they decide to invite undergraduates to curate a feminist show.
Correction: Ashton Cooper’s article first appeared as part of a Barnard College exhibition, not Bryn Mawr. For more information: The Problem of the Overlooked Female Artist: An Argument for Enlivening a Stale Model of Discussion
Kevin Tervala is Associate Curator of African Art and Department Head for the Arts of Africa, the Americas, Asia, and the Pacific Islands at The Baltimore Museum of Art.
Jennifer Kingsley is the Director of the interdisciplinary undergraduate Programs in Museums and Society at the Johns Hopkins University.
Apply for a Childcare Grant for CAA 2020
posted by CAA — Dec 06, 2019
Thanks for your interest! As of January 2, 2020, childcare grants are at capacity and the application portal is closed.
CAA recognizes the need among members for childcare support during the Annual Conference. In our effort to better meet these needs, CAA now offers grants of up to $250 per family.
Grants are available for CAA members who are registered for the conference and will bring their child to the conference, or who will incur extra care-giving expenses while away from their dependents.
Deadline to apply: January 5, 2020
Grant funding is limited and grants will be filled on a first-come, first-served basis. (If you signed up for the now-canceled onsite care with Kiddie Corp, you will be given priority.) The grants will be given as a reimbursement for expenses up to $250 upon submission of receipts or invoices.
Examples of allowable expenses
- Childcare expenses incurred on-site at the conference.
- Daycare above and beyond what is normally scheduled because member is attending the conference (for example, overtime at a daycare center, cost of a sitter, etc.)
- Travel expenses incurred in bringing a caregiver/family member to supervise your child at the conference or at your home.
- Travel expenses incurred in bringing a child to a caregiver/family member.
Note: Care must occur during the conference dates. Attendees are responsible for making their own arrangements. CAA does not sanction or recommend childcare providers and does not assume responsibility or liability for childcare services of any sort. It is the responsibility of the parent(s) to thoroughly investigate all childcare providers.
Expenses not eligible for reimbursement
- Normally scheduled childcare expenses in your home city.
- Toys, and tickets to museums, amusement parks, etc.
- Travel or other expenses related to the attendee’s participation in the meeting, conference registration, meals, or other expenses the attendee would already be incurring by attending the meeting.
Reimbursement procedure
- Reimbursement forms will be distributed to grantees upon notification, the completed PDF must accompany a scan of receipts.
- Recipients of a grant must submit receipts for reimbursable expenses by email to Mira Friedlaender, mfriedlaender@collegeart.org with the subject line “Child Care Reimbursement”, by March 5, 2020
- Reimbursements will be distributed within 3-4 weeks of CAA’s receipt of complete documentation.
Grants will be awarded on a rolling basis. The deadline to apply for the grant is January 5, 2020.
Questions about childcare grants for the Annual Conference? Email mfriedlaender@collegeart.org
The following Chicago-based childcare services are available for attendees seeking childcare during conference. CAA has no contract with these service providers, and this list should not be considered an endorsement of any companies listed.
American Childcare
207 East Ohio Street, 121, Chicago, IL 60611
Phone: 312-644-7300
Website: http://www.americanchildcare.com/hotel_babysitting.htm
College Sitters
1000 West Diversey Parkway, 234, Chicago, IL 60614
Phone: 773-697-9326
E-mail: lincolnparkil@collegenannies.com
Website: http://www.collegenanniesandtutors.com/nechicagoil
Sitters Studio
Phone: 312-890-8194
E-mail: bookchicago@sittersstudio.com
Website: http://www.sittersstudio.com/hotel-care/