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Division of the Arts

Arts Menu
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Apply Now!
The Division of the Arts offers programs in architecture, art history and visual culture, dance, film and electronic arts, music, photography, studio arts, and theater and performance. Theoretical understanding and practical skills alike are developed through production and performance in all disciplines. In the course of their program studies, students in the arts also develop aesthetic criteria that can be applied to other areas of learning. Students may undertake the arts for different reasons—as a path to a vocation or an avocation, or simply as a means of cultural enrichment. Working with a faculty adviser, the student plans a curriculum with his or her needs and goals in mind.

Our Programs

The Division of the Arts includes the following academic programs:

Architecture
Art History and Visual Culture
Dance
Film and Electronic Arts
Music
Photography
Studio Arts
Theater and Performance

Laurie Dahlberg, Division Chair; Associate Professor of Art History

Coursework and Requirements

As a student progresses to the Upper College, the coursework increasingly consists of smaller studio discussion groups and seminars in which active participation is expected. Advisory conferences, tutorials, and independent work prepare the student for the Senior Project. This yearlong independent project may be a critical or theoretical monograph, a collection of essays, or, for a large proportion of students, an artistic work, such as an exhibition of original paintings, sculpture, or photography; performances in dance, theater, or music; dance choreography or musical composition; or the making of a short film with sound. In designing their Senior Project topics, students may have reason to join their arts studies together with a complementary field or discipline, including programs or concentrations in other divisions. Plans for such integrated or interdivisional projects are normally created on an individual basis with the adviser.

Discover More

Live Arts Bard
(L-R) Rebecca Capper '17 and Joanna Warren '17 in the LAB commission of Sarah Michelson's "September17." Photo by Paula Court

Live Arts Bard

“When I was a student at Bard, I was drawn to the Fisher Center because of Live Arts Bard. LAB is pushing the frontiers of these art forms, all of which are becoming more open and fluid.” —Sam Miller ’15

Live Arts Bard (LAB) is the interdisciplinary residency and commissioning program of Bard’s Fisher Center. LAB creates a community of groundbreaking professional artists who work alongside students to create unconventional projects. Year 6 of LAB supported 37 artists across nine projects. Since 2012, LAB has supported 50-plus projects. Projects developed during LAB’s first six years have been performed in more than 70 communities worldwide.

LAB at the Fisher Center

Featured News

Tschabalala Self ’12 Talks Sewing, Collage, and the Creative Life with T, the New York Times Style Magazine
As part of its 2022 “Culture” issue, T, the New York Times Style Magazine, interviewed Tschabalala Self ’12, Bard alumna and visiting artist in residence, on the creative life and the connection between her practice of sewing and familial identity. Her mother collected fabric, Self says, something that comes to mind as she incorporates sewing into her artistic repertoire. “For me, sewing’s a kind of collaging,” Self said. More >

Recent News

  • Venezuelan-American Photographer Lexi Parra ’18 Named Recipient of a 2022 Getty Images Annual Inclusion Grant
  • Napping at Work? Sara Mednick ’95 Speaks with Discover Magazine about “How Naps Improve Memory Performance”
  • Alice Fall ’22 Wins Second Place in Lenscratch’s 2022 Student Prize Awards
  • Anne Hunnell Chen Joins Bard College Faculty as Assistant Professor of Art History and Visual Culture
View All News >>

Upcoming Events

  • 8/18
    Thursday

    Academic Program Information Session: Photography
    7:00 pm – 7:30 pm EDT/GMT-4
    Online Event
  • 8/19
    Friday

    Encounters: Music from the Time of Renewal
    7:30 pm – 9:30 pm EDT/GMT-4
    Maverick Concert Hall. Woodstock, NY
View All Events >>
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