Bridget Lee Wins the First Baccarat x NYSID Scholarship
First prize winner Bridget Lee (BFA). Photo: Katia Repina, Business of Home
On October 25, Baccarat awarded its first ever scholarship in partnership with the New York School of Interior Design to Bridget Lee, a BFA senior in her final semester at NYSID. The Baccarat x NYSID Scholarship program culminated in an award ceremony at Baccarat’s flagship Madison Avenue store on Wednesday, with a crowd of more than a hundred industry leaders and NYSID students.
When the team at Baccarat approached NYSID Development Director Joy Cooper about a scholarship several months ago, they expressed they wanted to give students more than financial support; they also wanted to provide a dynamic educational experience, exposure to their brand, and a chance to shine. So the College and Baccarat worked together to create the first Baccarat x NYSID Scholarship Program and competition.
Baccarat challenged six outstanding NYSID students–Peter Ibarra (MFA1), Bridget Lee (BFA), Carissa Pintello (MFA1), Jason Win (MFA1), Honqi Connie Zhan (MFA1), and Inkary Muenala (MFA2)–to design a space that inspires joy and celebration, and that incorporates lighting, decor, and/or tableware from the House of Baccarat.
Baccarat’s Senior Director of Marketing Reid Myers, Baccarat’s North American President & CEO Adam Banfield, Kravet Executive Vice President Ellen Kravet, and NYSID President David Sprouls.
Adam Banfield, Baccarat’s North American President & CEO, opened the awards ceremony. “Baccarat, for years now, has had the pleasure of being the trophy purveyor of NYSID’s annual gala in the spring. It is our honor to give back to the students of NYSID in a truly meaningful way, and to bring together this incredible group of designers, partners, and friends of the brand – into the House of Baccarat – and create a lasting legacy between our institutions,” he said. “Baccarat and NYSID have more in common than you might think. Above all, we inspire joy by helping people to craft beautiful spaces.”
At the event, the students presented their work to the crowd, which included the competition’s judges, NYSID Trustee Courtney McLeod, founder of Right Meets Left Interior Design; Marshall Watson, principal of Marshall Watson Interiors; and Elizabeth Lawrence, partner, Williams Lawrence.
The winners were:
First Prize ($10,000 scholarship): Bridget Lee (BFA) — View project
Second Prize ($1,500 Baccarat gift card): Peter Ibarra (MFA1) — View project
Third Prize ($500 Baccarat gift card): Jason Win (MFA1) — View project
Carissa Pintello (MFA1), Jason Win (MFA1), Peter Ibarra (MFA1), Honqi Connie Zhan (MFA1), Inkary Muenala (MFA2), and Bridget Lee (BFA). Photo: Katia Repina, Business of Home
Bridget Lee, the first-place winner of the scholarship, is a student who started her undergraduate degree in psychology and criminology at a college in Vancouver, and transferred to NYSID three years ago to follow her passion for interior design. She says, “I had a lot of fear about taking the creative path. Winning this scholarship award is an amazing confidence boost. It solidifies my mindset that I’m good at this and that I made the right choice in pursuing interior design.” Adds Lee, who is currently interning at Hilary Matt Interiors, “This scholarship helps me graduate a little bit ahead of where I thought I’d be as I finish my last semester.”
What Lee relished about the challenge presented by this scholarship competition was “the opportunity to explore the relationship between a brand identity and an interior environment,” she says. She went deep in her research of the brand and its origins in the creation of her design, The 1841 Bar and Lounge. She studied the arts and crafts of the village of Baccarat, France, where Baccarat Glass was established in 1765, and specified materials, such as traditional stone flooring, from the region. The iconic Harcourt 1841 glass from Baccarat, with its hexagonal foot and curved and beveled top, was a major inspiration for her. She repeated the shapes of this glass throughout the space, even designing custom drink tables in the lounge that echo the hexagonal base. She says, “I wanted to pay homage to the lineage of craftspeople and artisans, because with so many other brands that aspect is gone.”
Ellen Kravet, chair of NYSID’s board, and David Sprouls, NYSID’s president, were in attendance to see their students rise to the occasion. Says Sprouls, “All of the student work was impressive. We are so proud of them, and we are so grateful to Baccarat for their generosity and for creating this unique experience.”