The School of Visual Arts (SVA) is an art school located in Manhattan, New York City, and is widely considered to be one of the leading art schools in the United States. It was established in 1947 by co-founders Silas H. Rhodes and Burne Hogarth as the Cartoonists and Illustrators School and was renamed in 1956. It offered its first degrees in 1972. SVA is a member of the Association of Independent Colleges of Art and Design (AICAD), a consortium of 36 leading art schools in the United States.