2023 Call for Nominations

The Bishir Prize, named for longtime member and influential scholar Catherine W. Bishir, is awarded annually to the scholarly article from a juried North American publication that has made the most significant contribution to the study of vernacular architecture and cultural landscapes. In judging the nominated articles, the jurors look for an article that is based on primary research, that breaks new ground in interpretation or methodology, and that contributes generally to the intellectual vitality of vernacular studies. The Bishir Prize was awarded for the first time in 2012. 

Entries may come from any discipline concerned with vernacular architecture studies. Articles published  in the two years prior to the VAF annual conference are eligible for consideration. Please note that essays  published as chapters in a book are also eligible if the volume is peer-reviewed, published within the time  

Does your work contribute to the study of vernacular architecture and cultural landscapes? Have you published a scholarly article on the subject in the last two calendar years? You may be eligible for the Bishir Prize from the Vernacular Architecture Forum.  Entries may come from any discipline concerned with vernacular architecture studies. Articles should be based on primary research, break new ground in interpretation or methodology, and contribute to the intellectual vitality of these fields.

Please note that essays published as chapters in a book are also eligible if the volume is peer-reviewed, published within the time parameters specified, and the research presented in the essay is new. Anthologized collections are not eligible.

To nominate an article please submit the following:

• MS Word document providing contact information, publication data (title of journal, or name of book and publishing company (if an essay in a larger collection), and date of publication), 
• PDF copy of the published article including illustrations, and 
• a brief statement contextualizing the author(s) and article.

Articles published January 1st 2021 or later will be eligible for nomination. The deadline for nominations for the 2023 Bishir will be announced soon.

Nominations materials should be submitted to the Catherine W. Bishir Prize Committee at bishirprize@vafweb.org.

Bishir Prize Committee