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).

Dr. Elizabeth E. Guffey’s scholarly work meets at the convergence of design history and disability studies. Having authored an extensive body of work, Guffey has been published in Art in America, the New York Times, and the Journal of Visual Culture. Additionally, she is the founding editor of the peer-reviewed journal Design and Culture. As a leading academic in her field, Guffey has most recently co-edited After Universal Design: The Disability Design Revolution (2023). Previously, she co-edited Making Disability Modern (2020) and authored Designing Disability: Symbols, Spaces, and Society (2017). In Designing Disability, Guffey explored how design symbols can alter the environment and make a person more or less disabled, depending on the use of the design. At the State University of New York, Purchase College, Guffey teaches art and design history and heads the MA program in modern and contemporary art, criticism, and theory. Guffey’s dedication and substantial research have created greater visibility for design and disability studies.