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).

Laura Speers (MA 2013) gave a paper on “Farming, Cooking and Eating by the Book: English Household Mannuals in Colonial Virginia” at the Winterthur conference “Consuming Objects: Negotiating Relationships with the Material World” at the Winterthur Museum on April 12.

Craig Lee (MA 2012) is currently a PhD candidate in the University of Delaware American Civilization program. He recently presented a paper at the Society of Architectural Historians’ conference entitled “Denise Scott Brown, Las Vegas, and Learning from South Africa.”

Anna Kaplan (MA 2011) recently gave birth to a daughter, Oona Jean Kaplan Malczewski.

Colleen Germain (MA 2010) has moved to Los Angeles to work at One Kings’s Lane, where she will be assistant category manager, vintage and market finds. Her area of specialty will be the company’s rug and textile merchandise online.

Vicky Esterlis Motlin (MA 2008) is currently production manager of the decorative arts price database at Artnet. She recently returned from maternity leave. Her daughter Talia was born last July

Sarah Archer (MA 2006), a writer and curator living living in Philadelphia, recently wrote on “The Meaning of Clay at the Whitney Biennial” for Hyperallergic.

Edina Deme (MA 2001) is working at the Museum of Fine Arts in Budapest, where she is the deputy head and docent programme director.

Emily Wheat Maynard (MA 2004) lives in Louisville, Kentucky, where she continues to expand the jewelry business she founded ten year ago. Emily designs and creates one-of-a-kind handmade jewelry under the brand Elva Fields. She notes that it has been fun to pursue a creative career that combines her interest in the academic side of design as well.

Judith Gura (MA 1999) is working on two books for 2015 — A Guide to Period Styles and a book on New York’s interior landmarks.