JOIN THE SVA

All programs and publications of the Society for Visual Anthropology are paid for from members dues and subscriptions.

Between ten and fifteen scientific panels are sponsored by the SVA at the AAA meetings each year. Subjects range from the anthropology of representation and visual culture to questions of art, digital media and indigenous productions. We welcome student organized panels and presenters. To see the panels presented at previous AAA meetings, click here.

The annual Visual Research Conference, takes place on the Tuesday and Wednesday before the AAA meetings. It provides an opportunity for professional and student visual anthropologists to meet and enjoy exposure to visual works in progress. Presentations are 45 - 60 minutes in length and allow for extended viewing of visual material and discussion. There is thus much more opportunity for substantive give-and-take than in the usual AAA session. Conversations continue at lunch and dinner, and then at other SVA events and throughout the AAA meetings, creating multiple situations for networking and exchange of ideas. Members and non-members are welcome and there is no charge to attend. This is a wonderful way to meet and interact with others in the field. Presentations by members have included a CD about the classic Ax Fight film, discussions on primate behavior, Native American sign language, and the early history of ethnographic film. Members wishing to present at the conference should click here. To read about the 2006 conference, click here.

The open Business Members meeting at AAA allows members to informally meet each other and network with professionals and educators in visual anthropology.

SVA workshops are offered each year at the AAA meetings. They address issues of classroom presentations with visual media and hands-on assistance in the production of audio/visual material for research. Workshops foreground developments in the anthropological use of CD-ROM and web technologies.

The annual juried Film, Video and Multimedia Festival, held at the AAA meetings under the auspices of the Society, feature professional and student work. Each year we grant awards of Excellence, Honorable Mention, and Outstanding Student Production. We have also granted several Lifetime Achievement awards. Filmmakers and producers are invited to attend the award ceremony, and periodically we sponsor a filmmaker to attend the meetings. The Jean Rouch award in Visual Anthropology is given to the best student production. It recognizes specific creative projects in audio-visual media that further or expand upon the practices and possibilities opened up through Rouch's innovative filmmaking and his project of shared anthropology. Nominations should be submitted by June 30 of each year to any current member of the SVA Board of Directors. A letter of nomination should accompany a copy of the creative work submission. A committee of three, appointed by the SVA Board, will review the works and award-winners will be notified in advance of the annual AAA meetings so that they might consider attending. In addition to having their production presented during AAA, winners will receive a prize and a certificate of the award.

The Festival screenings are always heavily attended, since they provide a rare opportunity for anthropologists to preview work for classroom use. Since the inception of the Festival in 1986, the number of entries has doubled. The SVA has recently instituted a new Festival activity, "Open Viewing: Film/Video Library." Individuals may request private screenings of selected titles from previous festivals.

To submit a film, video or multimedia work to the Festival, click here.

To see previous film programs, click here.

The Collier prize for still photography is awarded periodically to a photographer whose work exemplifies the use of photography for research and communication of anthropological knowledge. The awardee can be nominated by any member of the SVA at any time. A letter of nomination and any supporting material should accompany a copy of the creative work submission.Once a nomination is received the Board appoints a committee to decide on its merits. A book or exhibit can be nominated for an award. For the latest winners, click here.

SVA acts as an advocate for visual representation. A resolution promoting the use of visual media to satisfy tenure and promotion requirements was sponsored and written by the SVA and accepted by the AAA. To see the full text of the resolution, click here.

SVA and Related Publications

Visual Anthropology Review, the biannual journal of the Society for Visual Anthropology, publishes articles on the forefront of visual research, theory and practice. Editors are appointed for a five-year tenure. The current editors are Liam Buckley and Laura Lewis of James Madison University.. Members receive the journal as part of their membership.

Anthropological Excellence in Film: Ten Years of Award Winners in the SVA/AAA Film and Video Festival (1995), edited by Thomas Dustin Blakely and Joan Swayze Williams, includes a short history of the SVA as well as detailed descriptions of each film. It is available for purchase through the AAA.

Substantial discounts for a subscription to Visual Anthropology, an independent, international journal, edited by Paul Hockings and published by Taylor and Francis, are available to members of the SVA.

Become a Member of the SVA

New members join both the AAA and the SVA at the same time. Membership is annual and includes subscriptions to The Visual Anthropology Review, American Anthropologist, and Anthropology News – the AAA's monthly news organ. Annual dues are $165 for professionals and $75 for students. Individuals who are already members of the AAA may join SVA for $40 (professional) and $25 (students). Individuals who are not members of the AAA may purchase The Visual Anthropology Review at a cost of $25 per volume.

You may become a member of the SVA/AAA online at the following web address:

https://secure.aaanet.org/form_mbr/index.cfm

If you wish to register through the mail, a printable pdf file of the membership form is available at:

http://www.aaanet.org/mbrprnt.pdf

On that form, please indicate that you wish to join the Society for Visual Anthropology.