Dear Alumni,

On this past frigid Saturday, I made the brave choice to venture from my apartment to the Grolier Club to see Pattern and Flow–a collection of decorated papers from the late 20th century. The rippling, marbled patterns (including Faith Harrison’s design for the ubiquitous Kleenex box!) were utterly inspiring, and mirrored the ebbing and flowing breeze outdoors.      

Saturday’s weather anomaly aside, the city seems to be gearing up for the spring season, including BGC! Two Focus Projects will be opening in BGC’s gallery on Friday, February 17: Shaped by the Loom and Staging the Table. Both exhibitions were in development during my tenure as a student and I am thrilled to see them come to life so soon. I would be remiss if I did not also highlight Professor Michele Majer’s retirement party, which will be taking place at BGC on February 23. Please see below in the “Events at BGC” for more details.  

As always, don’t hesitate to reach out with your news, either by email or through the online form.

Warmly,
Rachael Schwabe (MA ’20)
alumni@bgc.bard.edu

Alumni Spotlight

Brandy Culp (MA ‘04) recently did a Q&A with Antiques and the Arts Weekly about her new role as the Chief of Staff and Curator at Steven W. Spandle Architect, LLC. Well done, Brandy!

Nadia Westenburg (MA ‘17) will be presenting at the College Art Association Annual Conference on Friday, February 17. Her paper, “Depictions of Blackfeet in Great Northern Railway’s Promotional Materials for Glacier National Park” is part of a panel session entitled, “The Art of Nation Building: An examination of the representation of the U.S. National Parks.” Congratulations, Nadia!

Samuel Snodgrass (MA ‘21) has published a paper, “‘Patronized merely because he ought not to be’: Reverberations of Satirical Men-Milliners and Nineteenth-Century Perceptions of Charles Frederick Worth,” in the recent volume of Fashion Studies. Well done, Samuel!

Select Career Opportunities

Select BGC Events

Ecologies of Making: Knowledge and Process in Navajo Weaving
Friday, February 17
9:30 am–12:45 pm ET
Shaped by the Loom is the first exhibition to showcase the American Museum of Natural History’s collection of Indigenous textiles from the greater American Southwest. Placing Indigenous aesthetics and ways of knowing at the center of Diné (Navajo) textile production, it highlights the localized and land-based knowledge systems that guide the process behind the finished product. This symposium, organized around the exhibition’s opening, invites audiences into the world of Navajo weaving to hear directly from the artists, cultural practitioners, curators, and scholars whose work has both informed and expanded this collaborative project.

Curator Tour: Staging the Table
Saturday, February 18
4 pm ET
Explore the Staging the Table exhibition with the curator! These tours are not comprehensive studies of the exhibitions; rather they offer an opportunity to experience various ways of studying objects alongside BGC curators and scholars. Tours last 40 minutes and focus on a curated selection of objects. You are invited to stay and explore the rest of the exhibition at your own pace after the tour ends. Stop by for a studio visit before your tour to see the books in the exhibition come to life as virtuoso napkin folder Joan Sallas teaches BGC students the art of the fold and how to turn simple linen napkins into three-dimensional wonders. The Studio is on the 4th floor of the Gallery, open February 18, 2–4pm.

Weaving Stories, in Textiles and Television
Wednesday, February 22
6 pm ET
The thumping sounds of the weaving comb keep time as two masters at the loom recount a matrilineal history of artmaking. Lynda Teller Pete and Barbara Teller Ornelas—both fifth-generation weavers—will share stories, histories, and ways of seeing the artist in the art. They are joined by Barbara’s daughter Sierra—a sixth-generation weaver turned celebrated comedy writer, creator of the critically-acclaimed Rutherford Falls.

Retirement Party for Professor Michele Majer
Thursday, February 23
6pm ET (In Person)
Come honor Professor Michele Majer’s work at BGC and celebrate her retirement with the BGC community in the Lecture Hall of 38 W. 86th St! If you are able to attend, kindly RSVP to Julia Cullen at julia.cullen@bgc.bard.edu by February 15. If you cannot make the event, consider emailing Michele your well wishes at michele.majer@bgc.bard.edu.

Select Virtual and In-Person Events in the World

Reckoning with Masculinity
Thursday, February 9
6 pm ET
How have ideas of masculinity, gender, and sexuality been constructed and depicted in different times and places? What can we learn by reconsidering historical works dealing with these themes today? Curator Jun P. Nakamura presents how these ideas are addressed in Macho Men: Hypermasculinity in Dutch & American Prints. Listen to Philadelphia artist James Rose discuss how these themes relate to his own art practice. Learn how he reckons with being seen and understood in works such as Null and Void, two large drawings recently acquired by the museum and currently on view.

The Fifth Annual Interdisciplinary Undergraduate Conference on the Ancient World
Friday, February 10
9 am–5 pm ET
This conference, organized and moderated by graduate students for motivated undergraduates, will offer participants the opportunity to present their scholarship in the professional setting of an academic conference, providing a space for students of ancient texts, material culture, and art to come together and share their ideas. The keynote address will be delivered by Dr. Ann Macy Roth, Clinical Professor, Departments of Art History and Hebrew & Judaic Studies at New York University. Her talk is entitled, “Dirty Pictures Misinterpreted: the Case of Ancient Egyptian Pornography.” To attend, please RSVP here by February 9.

Wayward Waters: Black Cinema & the Atlantic Mouthpieces of Memory
Saturday, February 11
6 pm PT (In Person)
FILM at LACMA presents classic and contemporary narrative and documentary films, artists and their influences, emerging auteurs, international showcases, special guest-curated programs, and conversations with artists and special guests. As part of the series Wayward Waters: Black Cinema & The Atlantic, join FILM at LACMA for a special screening of Dreams Are Colder Than Death and Regards de Mémoire followed by a post-screening conversation.

Designing Indigenous Visual Languages with Traditional Ecological Knowledge
Sunday, February 12
2 pm ET (In Person)
How can design education support the understanding and revitalization of tribal visual sovereignty and the inclusion of an indigenous perspective? In this lecture and workshop, Sadie Red Wing, a Lakota graphic designer from the Spirit Lake Nation of Fort Totten, North Dakota, will share her background in design education and advocacy and introduce her research in the origins of Lakota symbols. Learn how symbols reflect and evolve from elements of the landscape and explore how to find meaning in place to shape your own visual communication. After the lecture, explore the creation of your own symbols by reimagining basic shapes that resonate with your own personal history. Each participant will print and take home a commemorative screenprint.

Art Smith: Jewelry, Jazz, and Jeté
Thursday, February 16
7 pm ET (In Person)
Join the Museum of Art and Design for an evening of jewelry, jazz, and dance, as we celebrate the modernist jeweler Art Smith, whose work is currently on view in Jewelry Stories. Smith confronted barriers of race, sexual orientation, and class to become a successful purveyor of wearable sculpture. Among his clients were haute giltterati, such as Duke Ellington, Pearl Primus, and Lena Horne. In honor of Smith, jazz singer Lezlie Harrison will perform a special selection of songs that embody the spirit of Smith’s work. The evening will also feature a modern dance performance by Kevin Boseman set to recordings of Art Smith’s recollections of his life and work, a screening of a short profile of the jeweler from the PBS series Craft in America, and a conversation with jewelry expert Sebastian Grant on Smith’s artistic inspirations and legacy.

Exhibition Program: Meet Artist Anne Lindberg
Saturday, February 18
1 pm ET (In Person)
In over 35 years as a visual artist, Anne Lindberg has been working within broad definitions of  drawing and textiles in two and three dimensions. Join us in the galleries for an opportunity to meet the artist and discuss her site-specific installation, what color is divine light?

Illuminating Du Bois: Examining the Legacy of a Sociologist and Historian Through Research and Design
Tuesday, February 21
1 pm ET
Deconstructing Power: W. E. B. Du Bois at the 1900 World’s Fair places decorative arts from Cooper Hewitt’s permanent collection in dialogue with 20 of W. E. B. Du Bois’ innovative data visualizations. On loan from the Library of Congress, these groundbreaking visualizations document the progress of Black Americans and life inside the veil of systemic oppression. Join Cooper Hewitt and Smithsonian Libraries and Archives for a conversation highlighting the legacy of Du Bois’ work as a sociologist and historian, which has inspired researchers and designers across disciplines.

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