The Center for Curatorial Studies (CCS) at Bard College in Upstate New York will open the doors to its library and archives facility’s new Keith Haring Wing next month. The two-storey masonry structure adds 12,000 sq. ft to the CCS Library and Archives, more than doubling the existing capacity. The expansion was supported by a $10m capital campaign, and is named in recognition of a $3m gift from the Keith Haring Foundation.
The expanded facility has become more urgent as CCS Bard’s library has grown over three decades from a modest graduate programme resource into a prized research center with more than 50,000 volumes and over 40 archival collections. The college has recently added the archives of the gallerist Gavin Brown, the scholar Eddie Chambers, and the curator Robert Storr. In a statement, Tom Eccles, the centre’s executive director, described the project as “an investment in our core educational mission and the many people who make up the CCS Bard community.”
The Haring Wing was designed by HWKN Architecture, the New York-based firm that remodelled CCS Bard’s Hessel Museum of Art a decade ago, in collaboration with C.T. Male Associates as the executive architect. Matthias Hollwich, HWKN’s founding principal, describes the project as a “contextual addition” that re‑engages with the firm’s earlier work while adding light and openness. The structure features minimalist interiors, open ceilings, and large windows that allow natural light to reach deep into the library. Inside, an expansive reading room adjacent to open research stacks will house more than 30,000 additional volumes. A 30-seat classroom will allow CCS to host classes and workshops for both graduate students and Bard’s undergraduate Art History and Visual Culture programme, while a new study room will provide group research and meeting facilities.
The Haring Foundation’s $3m gift for the new wing builds on a longstanding partnership with CCS Bard. In addition to funding the Haring Chair in Art and Activism, the foundation’s executive director Gil Vazquez said in a statement that the expansion aligns with Haring’s vision of “accessibility and community engagement through art and education”. The capital campaign also benefits from the Marieluise Hessel Foundation’s support; the foundation’s founder, Marieluise Hessel, co‑founded CCS Bard and endowed its museum.
