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About the Bardo Arts Center

Home to the WCU Fine Art Museum, BAC Performance Hall, and Niggli Studio Theater, the John W. Bardo Fine and  Performing Arts Center at Western Carolina University is a collective center for the arts in Western North Carolina. Bardo Arts Center (BAC) opened its doors in 2005 in a deliberate move to serve the region as a cultural catalyst to inspire, enrich and educate communities in Western North Carolina. Today, BAC serves audiences of all ages across Western North Carolina and empowers the regions artists and organizations through collaborative programming and community-based initiatives.  

Bardo Arts Center

The John W. Bardo Fine and Performing Arts Center was designed by GUND Partnership an award-winning professional practice located in Cambridge, Mass. The GUND Partnership creates transformative environments that educate, inspire and delight. Founded in 1971, GUND Partnership has been honored with more than 100 national and regional awards for design excellence and has received wide critical acclaim and professional recognition for its work.

“As one of the first new arts centers to be built in this region of North Carolina, the challenge of this program was to reach out to the larger vibrant arts communities in the Appalachian region. In addition to the traditional academic activities of the university faculty and students, the center engages artists, musicians, theatre groups, creative writers, folk artists and craft persons throughout the region. With a very strict public university budget, it was clear that every space needed to be ultimately flexible, with enduring, simple materials of quality.” -GUND Partnership

Situated on the site of several early Cherokee settlements, Bardo Arts Center features numerous Cherokee-inspired design elements. In the main atrium, the tile floor design of a seven-pointed star represents the seven Cherokee clans; a ni gi lo hi (Long Hair), a ni sa ho ni (Blue), a ni wa ya (Wolf), a ni go te ge wi (Wild Potato), a ni a wi (Deer), a ni tsi s qua (Bird), and a ni wo di (Paint).

Bilingual signage in Cherokee and English, originally translated by Myrtle Driver, Beloved Woman of the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians, can be seen throughout the center.

The Cherokee Syllabary on the walls of the main Atrium translates to “Our Story Lives On” (center) “Peaceful” (left) “Honorable” (right). Developed by Sequoya and adopted by the Cherokee Council in 1821, the Cherokee Syllabary is the written form of the Cherokee language.

WCU FINE ART MUSEUM

Fine Art Museum exhibit

 

The WCU Fine Art Museum promotes and facilitates meaningful engagement with contemporary works of art and artists.

The purpose of the Museum is to build and preserve exemplary art collections, produce thought-provoking exhibitions, and provide diverse experiences with contemporary art both inside and outside the Museum’s galleries. As an integral part of Western Carolina University, the Museum serves as a catalyst for interdisciplinary teaching and learning by WCU students, faculty, and audiences across the Western North Carolina community.

 PERFORMANCE HALL

Performance Hall in Bardo Arts Center with piano on the stage

 

The BAC Performance Hall provides the campus and community with access to internationally acclaimed artists and regional favorites. 

The Performance Hall features an elegant 1,000-seat theatre, with newly-tuned acoustics and state-of-the-art lighting system. The Performance Hall presents professional artists throughout the year in the Bardo Arts Center Performance Series and the BAC Film Series. In addition to world-class artists, Bardo Arts Center presents talented students and faculty from the WCU School of Stage and Screen and the School of Music. Bardo Arts Center also houses a more intimate performance setting for workshops and events called the Niggli Studio Theatre, similar to a traditional Black Box Theatre.

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