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

On August 16, Bard Graduate Center welcomed a new cohort of twenty-four students to its master’s and PhD programs. Orientation began on a sunny morning at 38 West 86th over a lively breakfast with the faculty. Over the next two-plus weeks, the new students met BGC’s vibrant community and learned about its diverse range of academic resources. The students enjoyed a “breathtaking” curatorial tour of the Brooklyn Museum’s Africa Fashion exhibition and a “refreshing and insightful” visit to Kykuit, the Rockefeller estate. The orientation also included language classes for incoming students in French, German, Italian, and Spanish and ample opportunities for interaction with various faculty and staff members.

Introduction to the Digital Humanities/ Digital Exhibitions curriculum at BGC is another important facet of orientation. Students created websites for objects of their choice and presented them to the BGC community after two weeks of work. They learned novel ways of designing exhibitions and spent time with the Public Humanities + Research department at the Bard Graduate Center Gallery.

With orientation behind them, these new students are now two weeks into the fall semester. We welcome their fresh perspectives and look forward to getting to know them better.


Entering MA Students

Mya Bailey, SUNY New Paltz, BA in Art History

Lauryn Bolz, Colorado State University, BA in Art

Allegra Chapman, Brown University, BA in Modern Culture and Media

Ev Christie, Wayne State University, BFA in Ceramics and Metalsmithing

Nishtha Dani, Ashoka University, BA in History

Daniela Diaz Blancarte, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, MA in Architecture; Universidad Iberoamericana, BA in Architecture

Isabella Garces, Tufts University, BA in International Relations

Lucy Haskell, Oberlin College, BA in Art History

Beatrix Henry, University of Toronto, BA in Art History

Jackie Mack, Bard College, MA in Art History and Visual Culture

Eugene Manning, Cambridge University, MA in Modern Languages; The American University of Paris, BA in Art History

RJ Maupin, Elon University, BA in Art History

Michael McCorry, University of Dublin: Trinity College, BA in Ancient History and Archaeology

Clara Murphy, The University of Melbourne, Graduate Diploma in Arts in Cultural Studies; Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology, BA in Art History and Spatial Practice

Abby Myers, Bates College, BA in Art and Visual Culture: Studio Art

Elana Neher, John Hopkins University, BA in Archaeology

Brielle Pizzala, University of St. Thomas, MA in Art History; University of Minnesota, BA in Art History

Keelin Pogue, Sarah Lawrence College, BA in Humanities

Vega Shah, University of Texas – Austin, BA in Anthropology

Janelle Williams, Howard University, BA in Political Science

Katrin Zimmermann, Fashion Institute of Technology, AA in Jewelry Design; University of London, BA in Chinese and Art and Archaeology

Entering PhD Students

Nicolas Cattelain, Institut d’Études Politiques de Paris, BA in Economics

Elena Kanagy-Loux, New York University, MA in Costume Studies; Fashion Institute of Technology, BA in Textiles/Surface Design

Joshua Massey, Bard Graduate Center, MA in Decorative Arts, Design History, and Material Culture; University of North Carolina, BA in American Studies

Entering Visiting Students

Franziska Blume, Humboldt University of Berlin

Lev Tarikov, European Humanities University