The BGC’s location was a big draw for me as an applicant to the MA program. The academic and gallery buildings’ proximity to the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Cooper Hewitt Smithsonian Design Museum, the Jewish Museum, and the Neue Gallery (to name a few) is excellent and much more integrated in my coursework here than I had anticipated. For instance, a course I am taking next term on 18th-century French decorative arts taught by professor Jeffrey Collins and curator Charlotte Vignon will be held largely in The Frick’s galleries and will give each student an opportunity to focus in on the history of an individual object in the collection.

The BGC’s city setting is also well-suited to the internship component of the MA program, which most full-time students undertake in the summer between their first and second years. This past summer, I worked in the auction world as an intern in the European Decorative Arts department at Christie’s Rockefeller Center. There I made important connections with prominent specialists and collectors which, as a Southern Californian, have helped me lay foundations in the city both personally and professionally.

Beyond the obvious academic and professional benefits to being in New York City, I can attest that living here is genuinely fun. Mere blocks from our residences at Bard Hall are the 57th Street Greenmarket, The Shops at Columbus Circle, and the Museum of Art and Design. Some of my favorite things to do, such as going to Brooklyn flea markets, seeing comedy shows in Greenwich Village, or attending live gospel brunches in Harlem, are readily accessible by public transit, as is the Museum of the Moving Image, a great place to see screenings of films new and old.

Good luck to all of you applying and feel free to get in contact with me with any questions.

—Maddy Warner, MA Class of 2020
Admissions Ambassador
madeline.warner@bgc.bard.edu

MA/PhD Application Deadline: January 3, 2020.
Apply now.