A visual history of the first quarter century of Bard Graduate Center

This handsome publication celebrates the first 25 years of the institution founded by Dr. Susan Weber in 1993. Located on the Upper West Side of Manhattan, Bard Graduate Center (BGC) has become the leading research center in the United States dedicated to the study of decorative arts, design history, and material culture. Its fully integrated academic and exhibition programs have pioneered the study of objects as a means to better understand the cultural history of the material world. This book, richly illustrated with installation views, exhibition objects, and archival photography, is enlivened by interviews with Susan Weber, Luke Syson, Arnold Lehman, and Kevin Stayton, as well as essays by scholars, curators, and collaborators who highlight the character and evolution of BGC’s unique approach to the research and display of material culture over the past 25 years. Through an array of exhibitions, publications, research, and academic programs, BGC has united diverse fields to highlight the importance of subjects and materials that had been previously ignored, and this book commemorates its achievement.