The Smithsonian American Art Museum is now accepting nominations for the 2019 Charles C. Eldredge Prize. The prize is given annually by the museum for outstanding scholarship in the field of American art. A cash award of $3,000 is made to the author of a recent book-length publication that provides new insights into works of art, the artists who made them, or aspects of history and theory that enrich our understanding of the artistic heritage of the United States. The Eldredge Prize seeks to recognize originality and thoroughness of research, excellence of writing, clarity of method, and significance for professional or public audiences. It is especially meant to honor those authors who deepen or focus debates in the field, or who broaden the discipline by reaching beyond traditional boundaries.

Single-author books devoted to any aspect of the visual arts of the United States and published in the three previous calendar years (2016–2018) are eligible. To nominate a book, please send a one-page letter explaining the work’s significance to the field of American art history and discussing the quality of the author’s scholarship and methodology. Nominations by authors or publishers for their own books will not be considered. The deadline for nominations is December 1, 2018. Please send them to: The Charles C. Eldredge Prize, Research and Scholars Center, Smithsonian American Art Museum, P.O. Box 37012, MRC 970, Washington, D.C. 20013-7012. Nominations will also be accepted by email: eldredge@si.edu, or fax: (202) 633-8373. For more information about the prize, please visit https://americanart.si.edu/research/awards/eldredge.

The museum will host a lecture by University of Texas at Austin professor Susan Rather, winner of the 2018 Eldredge Prize, on February 7, 2019, at 4pm EST. The talk will be related to Rather’s award-winning book, The American School: Artists and Status in the Late Colonial and Early National Era. It will also be available via webcast.