Art History Scholarship: Multi-Press Support

Marvelous new publishing opportunities are available to art history scholars, thanks to a ground-breaking multi-press collaboration: Art History Publication Initiative, or AHPI.

Funded by a $1.257 million grant from the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, the AHPI brings together four highly regarded presses whose combined strengths and resources will support art historians seeking publication of their first books: Duke University Press,  Penn State University Press, University of Pennsylvania Press, and University of Washington Press. Each participating press will acquire and manage books independently and those books will retain the individual publisher's design elements; however, all four will share a permissions manager, who will guide authors in obtaining permissions for print and digital use of illustrations, and a managing editor, who will oversee editorial and production processes. The collaboration is expected to streamline procedures for permissions management, reduce costs to first-time authors, and more effectively use new media to promote and enhance the appeal of works of art historical scholarship.

Authors whose books are selected for the collaborative publishing project will be given a number of benefits, including financial aid and guidance in acquiring and securing permissions for illustrations; first-book publication in print and electronic editions; a dedicated shared Website for posting electronic "enhancements" such as audio and video, illustrative materials, animations, and podcasts; and a print and digital marketing program.

The AHPI expects to publish 40 single-volume books (10 books per press) over five years. 

Descriptions of each of the presses, including contact information and a list of questions-and-answers about the project are found here.

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Duke University Press on FaceBook and Twitter

University of Pennsylvania Press on FaceBook and Twitter

Penn State University Press on FaceBook and Twitter

University of Washington Press on FaceBook and Twitter

American Association of University Presses, Sustaining Scholarly Publishing, March 2011 (pdf)

For information about two other unrelated but also welcome university e-book initiatives, Project MUSE Editions (PME) and University Press e-book Consortium (UPeC), go here.