ASAP/Journal

ASAP/Journal
Title	ASAP/Journal
Discipline	Contemporary art, Visual culture, Cultural studies
Abbreviation	ASAP/J.
Publisher	Independent
Country	United States
History	1994–present
Frequency	Quarterly

ASAP/Journal is an independent peer-reviewed periodical focused on contemporary contemporary art, visual culture, and critical theory with connections to museums, galleries, and academic programs. The journal has engaged contributors from institutions such as the Museum of Modern Art, Tate Modern, Guggenheim Museum Bilbao, Whitney Museum of American Art, and Centre Pompidou while responding to exhibitions like Documenta and Venice Biennale. Editors and authors have included figures associated with Yale University, University of Oxford, Columbia University, Goldsmiths, University of London, and California Institute of the Arts.

Overview

ASAP/Journal positions itself at the intersection of curatorial practice, scholarly analysis, and art criticism, drawing on networks that involve the Metropolitan Museum of Art, Smithsonian Institution, Princeton University, Harvard University, and New York University. Its remit covers artists and movements connected to Marcel Duchamp, Andy Warhol, Marina Abramović, Ai Weiwei, and Cindy Sherman as well as thematic links to exhibitions at Serpentine Galleries, Stedelijk Museum, Hammer Museum, MoMA PS1, and Fondazione Prada. The publication features essays, interviews, and project-based work involving curators from Frieze Art Fair, critics associated with Artforum, historians from Courtauld Institute of Art, and theorists from École des hautes études en sciences sociales.

History

Founded in the mid-1990s, the journal emerged amid debates influenced by contributors from The New York Times Arts section, writers tied to Flash Art, curators active at ICA London, and scholars from University of California, Los Angeles. Early editorial conversations referenced exhibitions such as Magiciens de la Terre and events like the Culture Wars period while intersecting with institutions including Walker Art Center, Berlin Biennale, Kunsthalle Basel, and MoMA. Over time, ASAP/Journal expanded dialogue with voices from Latin American Art, African Art, and Asian Art networks including practitioners linked to Bienal de São Paulo, Sharjah Biennial, Seoul Museum of Art, and Asia Society.

Editorial Structure and Policies

The editorial board has included academics and curators affiliated with University of Chicago, Goldsmiths, Royal College of Art, Columbia GSAPP, and New School. Peer reviewers have been drawn from departments and centers such as Institute of Contemporary Art, Bauhaus-Universität Weimar, École normale supérieure, and Central Saint Martins. Submission guidelines emphasize original work with reference practices that engage archives like Archives of American Art, collections at National Gallery of Art, and libraries such as the British Library while conforming to ethical standards observed by organizations including International Council of Museums and Society for Artistic Research.

Publication Format and Frequency

Published quarterly, the journal issues themed volumes and special dossiers responding to seasons of the art calendar, aligning with programming at Frieze Art Fair, Art Basel, London Art Fair, and TEFAF. Print editions complement an online platform that archives past issues and collaborates with digital projects from Rhizome, Digital Public Library of America, and JSTOR. Layouts incorporate contributions from designers who have worked with Pentagram, typographers associated with Monotype Imaging, and photographers represented by Magnum Photos.

Indexing and Impact

ASAP/Journal is indexed in subject-specific databases and has been cited in scholarship across departments at Brown University, Stanford University, Dartmouth College, and University of Toronto. Citations appear in monographs published by presses such as MIT Press, Routledge, Cambridge University Press, Rizzoli, and University of Chicago Press. The journal’s articles are used in syllabi for courses at New York University Institute of Fine Arts, Courtauld Institute, Pratt Institute, and Rhode Island School of Design and are referenced in exhibition catalogues produced by Tate Publishing, Sternberg Press, and Hatje Cantz.

Reception and Criticism

Reviews and responses have appeared in outlets like Artforum, The New Yorker, Los Angeles Times, The Guardian, and Frieze Magazine with critiques that situate the journal within debates associated with postcolonial theory, relational aesthetics, institutional critique, feminist art history, and postmodernism. Some commentators from The New York Review of Books and London Review of Books have praised the journal’s interdisciplinary reach, while others connected to Art in America and Hyperallergic have debated its editorial choices and geographic focus. Discussions at symposia hosted by Smithsonian American Art Museum, Hayward Gallery, and Sotheby’s Institute of Art have further interrogated its role.

Notable Articles and Contributions

Noteworthy pieces have examined figures and events such as Yayoi Kusama, Jean-Michel Basquiat, Barbara Kruger, Joseph Beuys, Gustav Metzger, Fluxus, Situationist International, Cildo Meireles, Lygia Clark, Harun Farocki, and Hito Steyerl. Special issues have focused on topics connected to decolonization, migration crisis, urban regeneration, and digital culture with contributions by scholars affiliated with Princeton University Art Museum, Brooklyn Museum, Los Angeles County Museum of Art, National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art, Seoul, and Museum of Contemporary Art Tokyo.

Category:Art journals