Harold T. Pinkett Student of Color Award: Aparna Subramanian

Aparna Subramanian, a graduate student in the Moving Image Archiving and Preservation Program at New York University (NYU), is a 2021 recipient of the Harold T. Pinkett Student of Color Award given by the Society of American Archivists (SAA). The award recognizes BIPOC graduate students who, through scholastic achievement, manifest an interest in becoming professional archivists and active members of SAA.

Subramanian’s passion for preserving audiovisual materials is evident in the evolving focus of her career. Noting a lack of archival training for media preservation in India and South Asia, she enrolled at NYU and became an active member of SAA and the Association of Moving Image Archivists (AMIA). Subramanian has received a number of grants and scholarships focusing on the preservation of audiovisual materials. Her work experiences include internships at the Smithsonian Design Museum, Weill Cornell Medicine, and the National Film Archive of India. She also worked on the NYU’s Regional Media Legacies Project, where she spearheaded renewed outreach to small historical organizations with hidden audiovisual collections; and served as a graduate assistant for the Digital Preservation and Outreach Education Network for Pratt Institute and NYU Tisch School of the Arts.

One supporter commended Subramanian’s “big picture understanding of media archiving needs and possibilities both locally and internationally.” These experiences—especially in associations—have informed her vision to bolster archival education opportunities and create strong archival professional networks in India and South Asia.