Bard Graduate Center is devoted to the study of decorative arts, design history, and material culture through research, advanced degrees, exhibitions, publications, and events.

Bard Graduate Center advances the study of decorative arts, design history, and material culture through its object-centered approach to teaching, research, exhibitions, publications, and events.

At BGC, we study the human past and present through their material expressions. We focus on objects and other material forms—from those valued for their aesthetic elements to the ordinary things used in everyday life.

Our accomplished interdisciplinary faculty inspires and prepares students in our MA and PhD programs for successful careers in academia, museums, and the private sector. We bring equal intellectual rigor to our acclaimed exhibitions, award-winning catalogues and scholarly publications, and innovative public programs, and we view all of these integrated elements as vital to our curriculum.

BGC’s campus comprises a state-of-the-art academic programs building at 38 West 86th Street, a gallery at 18 West 86th Street, and a residence hall at 410 West 58th Street. A new collection study center will open at 8 West 86th Street in 2026.

Founded by Dr. Susan Weber in 1993, Bard Graduate Center has become the preeminent institute for academic research and exhibition of decorative arts, design history, and material culture. BGC is an accredited unit of Bard College and a member of the Association of Research Institutes in Art History (ARIAH).

Susan Weber. Photo by Da Ping Luo.

Greetings from West 86th Street!

I hope your fall season has been as rich and vibrant as ours at Bard Graduate Center. The months have flown by so quickly; students are taking exams and turning in final papers this week. They are looking forward to a restful semester break, and I hope that you, too, have a moment to rest and relax before diving into the new year.

Nothing delights me more than the successes of our students and alumni. It is especially gratifying when we can connect these two groups, as we did many times this fall. It was a pleasure to organize a discussion between Billy DeGregorio (MA ’12, PhD ’21) and current PhD student Elena Kanagy-Loux, who met at the Ratti Center to discuss Billy’s new book and their respective experiences at the Met and at BGC. I was very proud of BGC’s many connections to Cooper Hewitt’s exhibition, A Dark, A Light, A Bright: The Designs of Dorothy Liebes, and you can learn more about that in this issue as well.

In the Gallery, it has been wonderful to see the praise that SIGHTLINES on Peace, Power & Prestige: Metal Arts in Africa has received in the New York Times, Ebony, Elle Décor, Essence, Hyperallergic, and the Architect’s Newspaper. If you haven’t yet seen it, I urge you to go before it closes on December 31.

This fall our Public Humanities + Research team worked with SIGHTLINES curator and associate professor Drew Thompson, BGC / Brooklyn Museum postdoctoral fellow in the arts of Africa Annissa Malvoisin, and the staff of the Brooklyn Museum to convene a two-day symposium called Exhibiting Africa. They brought together an impressive group of curators and scholars to reflect on this pivotal moment in approaches to the display of African art. Knowing that the conversations generated by the symposium may resonate in the field in the years to come, I am very pleased to share video recordings of each session on BGC’s YouTube channel.

Looking ahead, I hope you will mark these dates in your calendar. On February 23, the Gallery reopens with Sonia Delaunay: Living Art. Curated by Laura Microulis (MA ’96, PhD ’16) and Waleria Dorogova, it presents new research along with many objects that have never before been on view in the United States. Please also save the date for the annual Iris Foundation Awards luncheon on April 3.

Everything that we do at BGC depends on the generosity of our donors. It would be an honor to count you among our supporters this year.

See you in 2024!

Susan Weber

Director and Founder