The Bard Graduate Center Study Collection is made up of a growing number of objects in a variety of media that have been donated to us since the Collection’s founding in 2011. The purpose of the Study Collection is to support pedagogy by providing hands-on, close-up examination of objects as part of a classroom experience. Holdings include artifacts of glass, metal, ceramic, wood, plastic, textiles, and paper. Although many pieces come from Europe and the Americas dating from the eighteenth century to the present, there are also holdings from Asia and the Pacific Islands. Strong areas of the collection include modern ceramics, Indian textiles, silver, and silver-plated flatware.

The majority of the collection has been cataloged and photographed and is available on Artstor’s JSTOR Forum. The Study Collection is housed in our Object Lab (room 310, 38 West 86th Street) and is accessible to Bard Graduate Center faculty, students, and staff by appointment during regular Digital Collections hours. Objects are also housed in other areas of the building including the Digital Media Lab (DML) and the hall cabinet between the Digital Collections and the DML.

Fall and Spring semester:

  • Weekdays 10 am-6 pm (Fridays till 5 pm)*

Summer:

  • Weekdays 9 am-5 pm (Fridays till noon)*

For more information about viewing objects please contact Barb Elam, manager of the Study Collection: [email protected]

*Please note hours are subject to change due to Covid-19 restrictions

Objects are to be used in-house only. Please refer to the Object Lab Usage Guidelines or ask a Digital Collections staff member for any questions regarding handling, care, or transport of objects.