Peer Review Process

Contemporary Visual Culture and Art follows a rigorous double-blind peer review system to ensure the academic quality and integrity of all published work. Throughout the review process, both authors and reviewers remain anonymous. Reviewer reports are strictly confidential and are not publicly disclosed.

1. Initial Screening

All submitted manuscripts are first reviewed by the editorial office to assess:

• Relevance to the journal’s aims and scope in visual culture, art theory, and creative practice

• Compliance with submission and formatting guidelines

• Originality and absence of plagiarism (checked via iThenticate)

Manuscripts that do not meet the journal’s basic requirements may be desk-rejected without external review.

2. Assignment of Reviewers

Manuscripts passing the initial check will be sent to at least two independent reviewers with expertise in relevant areas of visual studies, contemporary art, media theory, or cultural analysis. Reviewers are selected based on:

• Subject matter expertise

• Research and publishing background

• No recent collaboration or institutional affiliation with the authors (within the past 3 years)

To maintain fairness, the journal does not accept author-suggested reviewers.

3. Peer Review and Recommendations

Reviewers are asked to evaluate the manuscript based on:

• Intellectual and artistic relevance

• Conceptual and theoretical contribution

• Methodological clarity (when applicable)

• Quality and clarity of writing and visual documentation

Reviewers will recommend one of the following decisions:

• Accept

• Minor Revision (Revisions Required)

• Major Revision (Resubmit for Review)

• Reject

4. Editorial Decision

Based on reviewer feedback, the Editor-in-Chief or a designated Associate Editor will make the final decision. Authors receiving revision requests must submit:

• A revised manuscript

• A detailed, point-by-point response to reviewer comments

Typical revision timelines:

• Minor revisions: within 7–14 days

• Major revisions: within 14–30 days

Requests for deadline extensions should be sent to cvca@zycenter.com.

5. Ethical Handling of Editor Submissions

Editorial board members are not allowed to oversee the review of their own submissions. Such manuscripts will be handled by a neutral editor with no conflict of interest and reviewed by independent experts.

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6. Post-Acceptance Process

Accepted manuscripts enter the production stage, which includes:

• Professional copyediting

• Layout and design formatting

• Final proofreading

Authors will receive final proofs to review before publication. Once published, each article is assigned a Digital Object Identifier (DOI) and becomes immediately accessible online.

7. Appeals

If an author disagrees with a rejection decision, they may appeal by writing to cvca@zycenter.com with:

• A formal justification for the appeal

• A point-by-point reply to reviewer comments

Appeals will be reviewed by the Editor-in-Chief or an appointed senior editor. All appeal decisions are considered final.