About
Upcoming Exhibitions
BGC Gallery will resume its exhibition programming this September with the return of Sèvres Extraordinaire! Sculpture from 1740 until Today, originally slated for fall 2024.
Bard Graduate Center is an advanced graduate research institute in New York City dedicated to the cultural histories of the material world. Our MA and PhD degree programs, Gallery exhibitions, research initiatives, scholarly publications and public programs explore new ways of thinking about decorative arts, design history, and material culture.

About
28th Annual Iris Foundation Awards
Honoring Irene Roosevelt Aitken, Dr. Julius Bryant, Dr. Meredith Martin, and Katherine Purcell
Events
Wednesdays @ BGC
Join us this spring for weekly programming!





About

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).


Each year Bard Graduate Center hosts two fellowships in partnership with Pratt Institute. These opportunities were developed in collaboration with the faculties of the Master of Science in Library and Information Science and the undergraduate program in Communications Design at Pratt. They provide exceptional students in these programs, especially those who focus on art librarianship and graphic design within museums, galleries, publishing, and academia, with professional experience and invaluable mentorship in BGC’s departments of Research Collections and Marketing, Communications, and Design. The fellowships are dedicated to advancing diversity and inclusion within their respective fields.

Stefany Merkelbach and Naomi Desai are this year’s Pratt Fellows. Merkelbach’s interests in academic libraries, archives, and museum collections aligned seamlessly with the unique, hands-on learning opportunity offered by BGC’s academic art library and study collection. She enjoys collaborating cross-departmentally with a seasoned team of library staff, many of whom are fellow Pratt alums, including collection development librarian Abigail Walker, research services librarian Polly Cancro, and digital collections metadata librarian and study collection manager Barb Elam.

Vy Nguyen (left), BGC’s Coordinator of Marketing and Communcations, and Stefany Merkelbach (right) discuss her current project. Photo by Fresco Arts Team.

“The library team here is so welcoming, [and] they are very interested in making this experience worthwhile for the fellows. They really want us to come away having fulfilled our own interests and [having learned] about ourselves and ourselves in the field,” said Merkelbach.

Photo by Fresco Arts Team.

One of Merkelbach’s recent projects involved the processing, photographing, and shelving of more than 156 dolls donated to the BGC Study Collection to present them in accessible ways for the community. Since working amongst BGC’s video and object collection and touring other museum libraries and special collections, Merkelbach is discovering a career interest in material objects beyond books. Merkelbach’s fellowship spans the entire duration of her two-year master’s program, so she will continue her work at BGC through summer 2025.

Naomi Desai pictured in front of the chronology she designed for BGC’s Sonia Delaunay exhibition. Photo by Vy Nguyen.

Naomi Desai is a senior at Pratt where she majors in communications design with a focus on graphic design and minors in sustainability and social justice. She joined BGC as the graphic design fellow in September 2023. Desai, motivated by an interest in designing for exhibitions and for print and publications, was an exceptional match for this multidisciplinary experience. Under the mentorship of BGC’s art director, Laura Grey, and senior designer, Jocelyn Lau, Desai designs branded marketing materials, including event posters and social media ads. Recently she played a critical role in conceptualizing and executing a three-wall chronology component that orients visitors to BGC’s acclaimed Sonia Delaunay: Living Art exhibition, on view through July 7.

Sonia Delaunay chronology. Photo by Fresco Arts Team.

Guided by Grey and Lau’s perceptive design sensibilities and trust-based team leadership, Desai is further developing her personal career interests in typography and print with two upcoming design projects: the BGCX publication What Are Objects? by Anne-Sophie Lehmann and the program for BGC’s upcoming Qualifying Paper symposium, where graduating MA students present their capstone papers. Desai will conclude her fellowship in fall 2024

Desai and Merkelbach both agree that their fellowship experiences at BGC have been incredibly instrumental in shaping their career pursuits, kindling new professional interests, and fostering personal growth. “There’s so much more to learn outside of school and this is a great place to do that,” said Desai.