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Iris Cantor Receives Bard Graduate Center Award for Outstanding Patronage in the Arts

Iris Cantor, President and Chairman of the Cantor Foundation, was honored on April 9 by the Bard Graduate Center for her support for the arts.  She received the Center’s Iris Foundation Award for outstanding patronage.  Other awardees were Dame Rosalind Savill for outstanding achievement in scholarship, and Dr. Finbarr Barry Flood, outstanding mid-career scholar.  The awards were presented by Susan Weber, Founder and Director of Bard Graduate Center.

In introducing Mrs. Cantor, Ms. Weber recognized her exemplary support for the arts and the cultural institutions that present them, as well as her inspiring work in improving health care for women.  She expressed  “gratitude for your passionate commitment to enriching museums and other educational institutions across the country.  Your achievements as a patron and an advocate for the arts and scholarship inspire us all. This is the true spirit of the Iris Award, and we are delighted to salute and celebrate your work today.”

The Iris Foundation Awards were created in 1997 to recognize scholars, patrons, and professionals who have made outstanding contributions to the study and appreciation of the decorative arts and thereby help to sustain world cultural heritage.  The Awards are named for Susan Weber’s mother, Iris Weber.  The Bard Graduate Center’s gallery exhibitions, MA and PhD programs, and research initiatives explore new ways of thinking about decorative arts, design history, and material culture.  Located in New York City, it  is a unit of Bard College.