CAA News Today
Update Your Profile Information for the CAA Online Member Directory
posted by Nia Page — February 23, 2010
Available soon to current individual CAA members, the online Member Directory will allow you to search for other individual members based on name and address; organization; and city, state, and country.
Before the directory is launched in early March, CAA encourages you to log into your CAA account to review and update all of your contact information, including information that will appear in the Member Directory. This is a good time to remove duplicate or outdated information.
If you have more than one valid address on your record, you may choose which address to include in the directory. Organization and title will only be included with a business address. In addition, only your primary phone, email, and/or website address will be used regardless of which address you choose.
After logging into your CAA account, click the “Contact Info” link on the left side to review your contact information. Instructions on the page will help you choose an address for the Member Directory.
You may prevent any information from appearing in the directory by unmarking all addresses on your record.
Questions or problems? Please contact Member Services by email or call 212-691-1051, ext. 12, during regular office hours, Monday–Friday, 9:00 AM–5:00 PM ET.
New CAA Member Benefit: Humanities E-Book
posted by Nia Page — December 04, 2009
Humanities E-Book, a project of the American Council of Learned Societies (ACLS), offers unlimited access to its collection of nearly three thousand cross-searchable, full-text titles across the humanities and related social sciences. Titles, which include fifty-six CAA Monographs on the Fine Arts, have been selected and peer reviewed by ACLS constituent learned societies for their continued importance and value in teaching and researching. The collection, which grows by about five hundred books a year, includes both in- and out-of-print titles published from the 1880s to the present. Humanities E-Book titles also link to publishers’ websites and to online reviews in JSTOR, Project MUSE, and other sites.
Individual Subscriptions
As a special benefit of CAA membership, individual members can acquire a twelve-month, renewable subscription to Humanities E-Book for $35, which helps sustain the resource for the entire scholarly community.
Individual subscriptions are an attractive option for those whose institutions do not already subscribe to Humanities E-Book, or for CAA members who might not be affiliated with a subscribing institution. Please check this list to see if your institution subscribes.
When completing the Humanities E-Book’s online purchase module, choose the College Art Association from the Society Affiliation pull-down menu and enter your CAA member number. Be sure to review the terms of service before subscribing. For inquiries, please write to subscriptions@hebook.org or call 212-697-1505.
Institutional Subscriptions
Humanities E-Book offers a special 10 percent discount on subscriptions to institutional CAA members. Subscriptions range from $450 to $3,125, depending on the size of your institution.
Institutional subscription information, including pricing, is available on the Humanities E-Book website. For a free trial, a subscription for your school, museum, or organization, or further information, please write to info@hebook.org and mention that you are an institutional CAA member.
CAA Launches Conference Website and Opens Online Registration
posted by Emmanuel Lemakis — October 08, 2009
The CAA Annual Conference is the world’s largest international forum for professionals in the visual arts. More than four thousand artists, art historians, curators, educators, and students are expected to meet February 10–13, 2010, at the Hyatt Regency in Chicago.
2010 Annual Conference Website
The conference website, which contains registration information, travel and hotel details, Career Services features, reception and meeting listings, special events, and more, was launched yesterday.
The conference website expands on the 2010 Conference Information and Registration booklet that will arrive in members’ mailboxes later this month; new material and information will be added regularly between now and February.
Listings of session titles and chairs are also available on the conference website. Full session details, including the names of panelists and their paper titles, will be posted soon.
Register Online Now
Online registration opened yesterday. You can also buy tickets for other events, such as the Gala Reception, professional-development workshops, and postconference tours. Alternatively, you may use the printed forms in Conference Information and Registration.
Early registration is available through December 11, 2009:
- Members: $155
- Student and retired members: $90
- Nonmembers: $280
Reserve Your Hotel Room
CAA was able to renegotiate cheaper hotel rates at the Hyatt Regency Chicago, the headquarters hotel, to help save conference attendees even more money. See Travel & Lodging on the conference website for full details.
New CAA Affiliated Societies
posted by Emmanuel Lemakis — August 26, 2009
CAA welcomes two art organizations into its family of affiliated societies: the European Architectural History Network and Public Art Dialogue. Affiliated societies are groups of art professionals and other organizations whose goals are generally consonant with those of CAA, with a view toward facilitating intercommunication and mutual enrichment.
The European Architectural History Network (EAHN) supports research and education by providing a public forum for the dissemination of knowledge about the histories of architecture. Based in Europe, it serves architectural historians and scholars in allied fields without restriction on their areas of study. The network seeks to overcome limitations imposed by national boundaries and institutional conventions through increasing the visibility of the discipline among scholars and the public; promoting scholarly excellence and innovation; fostering inclusive, transnational, interdisciplinary, and multicultural approaches to the history of the built environment; encouraging communication among the disciplines that study space; facilitating the open exchange of research results; and providing a clearinghouse for information related to the discipline.
Public Art Dialogue (PAD), cochaired by Harriet F. Senie and Cher Krause Knight, is an organization devoted to public art. Its membership includes art historians, artists, curators, administrators, architects, landscape architects, and others engaged with the wide arc that encompasses public art. PAD’s goal is to provide platforms for dialogue among public-art professionals and students across disciplines.
For more information on CAA’s affiliated societies, please write to Emmanuel Lemakis, CAA director of programs.
2009 Member Survey Results
posted by Michael Fahlund — July 16, 2009
As part of information-gathering pursuant to the preparation of CAA’s 2010–2015 Strategic Plan, a 2009 member survey was developed, coordinated, and carried out by a team under the leadership of Elizabeth Knapp, vice president in the Research Division of the marketing firm Leo Burnett Worldwide, to determine member preferences, awareness of CAA publications and programs, and motivations for joining and renewing membership.
In total, 1,451 CAA members responded to the online survey, a response rate of 11 percent (which is within an acceptable range for statistical analysis). The final sample was then weighted to accurately reflect the total CAA membership based on membership type. The results are an enlightening view into CAA members’ views and opinions, revealing important strengths but also giving direction to how the organization can use the next strategic plan to improve its programs and services.
Demographically speaking, CAA members are more likely to be female (70 percent), within the age range of 35–49 (34 percent), Caucasian (87 percent), and in academic settings (73 percent), and to have ten years or more of professional experience (48 percent).
The top three reasons individuals gave for joining CAA and renewing their memberships were for job postings (69 percent), networking (54 percent), and debate in the visual arts (50 percent).
CAA is perceived as most relevant to art historians (78 percent agree). From artist members, enthusiasm for ARTspace at the Annual Conference was one of the higher-ranking areas of interest (61 percent). CAA is viewed as a well-known organization among peers (75 percent agree) and a well-run organization (51 percent agree). Members who responded to the question about CAA’s roles believe the most important are advocacy for artists, art historians, and university art museums (24 percent), a conference provider (21 percent), and a leader of creative and intellectual discourse (17 percent). The most common contact points between members and CAA are through publications and emails. The Art Bulletin has the strongest reputation among members (64 percent). The most used features of the CAA website are membership renewal (76 percent), conference registration (70 percent), and CAA News (60 percent). At least half the members also visit the CAA website regularly. A near majority of members (45 percent) have interest in social networking through CAA.
The CAA Annual Conference is perceived as important for networking (68 percent) and career development (62 percent), an opportunity for intellectual exchange about the visual arts (58 percent), and relevant to professional development (53 percent). At the conference, members mostly likely attend sessions (76 percent), the Book and Trade Fair (65 percent), and, as noted above, ARTspace (61 percent). The most popular conference topics are criticism and theory (33 percent) and contemporary art history (31 percent).
The most popular publication topics for the future are curriculum development for teaching studio and art-history courses; legal and copyright issues in publishing; career-development strategies; and standards and guidelines in the visual arts in academia. Members agree that digital publications are valuable because they can be searched online (76 percent), are environmentally friendly (71 percent), can expand readership and distribution (59 percent), and can include dynamic content (56 percent). Members are undecided on the future of digital publications, but 49 percent of respondents do not favor online, non–peer reviewed publications.
CAA continues to advocate on issues of importance to members and to the visual arts. Among these, members feel that full-time vs. adjunct status is most important (50 percent), followed by intellectual-property issues (38 percent) and salary equity (39 percent).
In efforts to increase its visibility and recognition for the programs and services it provides, CAA is eager to know how members react to or view its name. While some members felt that the name “College Art Association” or “CAA” is not descriptive of what the organization does, or that it does not fit the mission, 65 percent believe that the name is understood in the field of visual arts. Name recognition and identity will be assessed as part of CAA’s communications activities in the strategic plan.
Other directions gathered from this survey that will be addressed in the strategic plan are to: 1) increase programming and publications for artists; 2) attract more young professionals; 3) increase the diversity of members; 4) increase career-development sessions at the conference; 5) increase interactive communications; 6) develop practical peer-reviewed publications; and 7) continue working on advocacy issues, particularly related to adjunct faculty.
CAA thanks its members for participating in this recent survey. Comments and responses have been extremely helpful and are being used to guide changes and improvements in the organization’s services.
Submit a Session Proposal for the 2011 Annual Conference
posted by Emmanuel Lemakis — July 01, 2009
Individual CAA members may submit a session proposal for the centennial Annual Conference, taking place February 9–12, 2011, in New York. Proposals should cover the breadth of current thought and research in art, art and architectural history, theory and criticism, pedagogical issues, museum and curatorial practice, conservation, and developments in technology.
The Annual Conference Committee welcomes session proposals that include the work of established artists and scholars, along with that of younger scholars, emerging and midcareer artists, and graduate students. Particularly welcome are those sessions that highlight interdisciplinary work. Artists are especially encouraged to propose sessions appropriate to dialogue and information exchange relevant to artists.
Session proposals are only accepted online; paper forms and postal mailings are not required. To set up an account, please email Lauren Stark, CAA manager of programs, who will register your email address and provide you with a password. For full details on the submission process, please visit Chair a Conference Session. Deadline: September 1, 2009; no late applications are accepted.
Renew Your CAA Membership
posted by Nia Page — December 15, 2008
CAA renews memberships on a rolling basis, much like a magazine subscription. However, because the previous renewal schedule before 2005 was based on the calendar year, many current individual and institutional memberships expire on December 31, 2008. Your access to essential online resources, printed materials, and journals, and to the 2009 Board of Directors election, is available only with a current membership.
In addition, special conference-registration discounts apply only to CAA members. The early registration deadline is December 19, 2008. Don’t miss out on these great savings—be sure your membership is current.
It’s easy to check your membership status or to renew your membership online: click on “Account Log In” at the upper right of this webpage; you can gain access to your profile with your CAA member number (located on your membership card or mailing address label) and password. Your preset password is included in your membership packet.
If you have forgotten your member number or password, please contact CAA’s Member Services at memsvcs@collegeart.org or by fax at 212-627-2381. You may also call 212-691-1051, ext. 12, during our office hours: Monday–Friday, 9:00 AM–5:00 PM EST.
CAA Member Survey Results
posted by Christopher Howard — October 15, 2008
CAA warmly thanks the 831 participants in a recent email survey, which was sent to 8,300 members whose database records indicate that their primary profession is: art/architectural historian, artist, administrator, curator, art-museum educator, or librarian. The results of the survey will be presented at the Board of Directors’ Strategic Planning Retreat on October 25, 2008, and will be incorporated into discussions on how to better serve all CAA members in the new strategic plan.
The survey contained one open-ended question: “What are the most pressing issues you face in your profession?” The following summary provides a synopsis of your responses, which are recorded in order of priority and frequency; many respondents gave multiple answers.
Art/Architectural Historians – 455 respondents
33% – Decrease in positions; increase in PhDs; reduction of tenured positions and increase in part-time and adjunct positions
17% – Difficulty finding publishers; insufficient number of art journals; decrease in presses publishing art history; tenure requirement for monographs vs. few presses publishing monographs
16% – Limited research funds and high cost of travel
13% – Work load vs. keeping up with the field and quality of life
11% – High cost of image reproduction; copyright restrictions
7% – Low salaries and need for pay equity
7% – Issues regarding resources and attention devoted to historical art vs. contemporary art; Western vs. non-Western art; national vs. global; traditional curriculum, research, and pedagogy vs. interdisciplinary curriculum, research, and pedagogy
7% – New technology demands: cost, training, accessibility
5% – Need for American public understanding of art and combating anti-intellectualism
4% – Viability, credibility, and relevance of art history to other disciplines
Artists – 305 respondents
40% – Earning enough to support creative work; finding jobs and job security
23% – Finding reliable galleries; support for exhibitions; support for creative work and research
19% – Need for exposure of work, networking, and negotiating the art world
17% – Low salaries and need for pay equity
13% – Reduction of tenured positions and increase in part-time and adjunct positions
5% – Maintaining art as a critical discipline on all levels of education
5% – Need for health insurance
5% – Heavy teaching load and higher expectations for productivity
5% – Need for greater preparation of entering students
Administrators – 47 respondents
45% – Decrease in federal, state, and private funding for research, travel, faculty, staff, and technology
10% – Decrease in scholarships and fellowships
10% – Reduction of full-time faculty and increase in part-time faculty
10% – Recruitment of qualified candidates for faculty positions given the expansion of disciplines and need for pedagogical expertise
7% – Decreased enrollment
6% – Need for pay equity between art historians and artists
5% – Work load vs. keeping up with the field
4% – Blurring of disciplines and need for curriculum revision; new forms of assessment
Curators – 14 respondents
44% – Financial stability of art museums; decrease in funds for research and scholarly exhibitions
19% – High stress, long hours, and diminished staff positions
15% – Devaluation of research
10% – How to communicate with the public
10% – Low salaries and need for pay equity
5% – Demands of exhibition funders
Art-Museum Educations – 6 respondents
25% – High stress, long hours, and diminished staff positions
10% – Maintaining links between museum educators and art historians
10% – Low salaries and need for pay equity
5% – Decrease in funds for public programs
Art Librarians – 4 respondents
30% – New technology equipment costs, training, and research
25% – Decreased funds for purchase of books and periodicals
10% – Recruitment of qualified candidates for staff positions
Because many respondents gave more than one answer, the percentages do not always add up to 100 percent.