Mission Statement

Assemblage is a student-run, peer-reviewed, open-access journal, committed to publishing graduate research from Hunter College’s Art History department and to representing diverse areas of study within the art historical field.

We aim to provide the public with documentation of the stellar research accomplishments of Hunter College’s graduate students. The journal functions as a platform for participants to construct and receive collaborative feedback, gain experience in academic publishing, and engage critically in one another’s scholarly research. Assemblage also operates as a platform for collaboration between MA and MFA students and is committed to fostering conversations between artists and art historians in the form of art criticism, interviews, and the digital showcasing of MFA accomplishments. The publication maintains three key objectives: to review and publish recent academic papers of graduate students; to present this ongoing research to a wide, online readership; and to facilitate interdisciplinary collaboration around existing and emerging ideas of graduate artists and art historians at Hunter College. 

Assemblage welcomes submissions from Hunter’s MFA as well as MA students. The journal publishes work on a broad range of topics and is not limited to a specific chronological, geographical, or methodological area. In considering a wide scope of topics for publication, Assemblage strives to expand research interests, encourage academic exploration, and adapt to the evolving focuses of graduate students. 

Contributor Guidelines

Papers considered for submission in Assemblage will usually be original art historical research. The journal will generally not publish short-form reviews of artists or exhibitions, but does welcome reviews and criticism of Hunter MFA artwork. The journal encourages creative submissions and is eager to consider unorthodox texts and formats. Both MA and MFA students at Hunter College are encouraged to submit work for consideration. Please feel free to submit your most intriguing work, whether it be a traditional research paper or otherwise.

Submissions should be in Chicago style format and should not exceed 18 pages in length.

Please submit your paper for review to assemblagejournal@gmail.com along with a few sentences in the body of the email briefly explaining the topic and argument of your work.

Review Policy

The editorial process will be designed to meet the standards of an academic journal, providing students with the enriching experience of collaborative editing and publishing. Once accepted for publication, students’ papers will be grouped in pairs and the respective authors will be expected to draft feedback for one another. Students are encouraged to participate in Zoom conferences with their paired author to engage in the peer-review process. After this initial round of one-on-one peer review, students will submit their papers for a final revision, which will be completed by the editorial board.

Permissions

Students will retain full copyright ownership of their work after publication with the journal. However, we ask that authors cite Assemblage Journal as the site of first publication should they publish their papers subsequently. Due to the nonprofit and academic nature of the journal, all images included in the journal will be published under fair use. Students bear the responsibility for ensuring that images they select to illustrate their papers can be published under fair use.