2026 Preservation Awards | Lydia Mattice Brandt
Thursday, May 14th 2026
WINNER | Preservation Leadership
Lydia Mattice Brandt, Ph.D.
Professor of Art History, University of South Carolina
Lydia Mattice Brandt, Ph.D., has played a vital role in shaping how Columbia understands and values its built environment. As a professor of art history at the University of South Carolina since 2011, Brandt has built a career that connects scholarship, teaching, and community engagement to the practice of historic preservation.
Promoted to full professor in 2021, Brandt teaches courses in architectural history, American art, and preservation that frequently draw upon Columbia’s own historic resources. Her students engage directly with the city’s buildings, landscapes, and archives, creating a bridge between academic research and real-world preservation work.
Brandt’s scholarship has also made significant contributions to documenting and protecting historic places in Columbia. In collaboration with preservation professionals and community partners, she co-authored the National Register nominations for the Olympia Mill Historic District and the Five Points Historic District in 2018. In 2021, she co-produced a comprehensive survey of 721 resources in downtown Columbia, many representing the city’s mid-twentieth-century development. This work has helped expand the understanding of what buildings and stories deserve recognition and protection.
Her work also brings history to broader audiences. Brandt co-created the State House Monuments Tour and contributed to Historic Columbia’s website and the Historically Complex podcast, providing accessible ways for the public to explore the city’s history. Earlier in her career, she launched the “Digitizing Bull Street” initiative to document the former South Carolina State Hospital campus before redevelopment reshaped the site, preserving an important record of one of the city’s most significant historic landscapes.
Beyond research, Brandt has served the preservation field through leadership and mentorship. She served on the South Carolina State Board of Review for the National Register of Historic Places from 2013 to 2018 and has guided more than 35 graduate theses at USC. Her contributions to scholarship and public engagement have been widely recognized, including the Fresh Voices in the Humanities Award from South Carolina Humanities in 2021 and USC’s Distinguished Research Service Award in 2024.
Through teaching, research, and public scholarship, Lydia Brandt demonstrates how thoughtful study of the built environment can deepen public understanding and strengthen preservation efforts. Her work continues to influence how Columbia recognizes and protects the places that shape its history.
Congratulations, Lydia!
Check out some of the other 2026 Preservation Award recipients:
2026 Preservation Awards | Main Street District
Main Street District received the 2026 Preservation Leadership Award for visionary leadership in using historic preservation as a catalyst for downtown revitalization, transforming Main Street into a thriving urban district through advocacy, strategic designation, and measurable economic impact.
2026 Preservation Awards | Conway Architectural Salvage & Heritage Project
Conway Architectural Salvage & Heritage Project received the inaugural Traditional Building Arts award for innovative leadership in preservation through deconstruction, education, and material salvage that transforms loss into opportunity and keeps historic craftsmanship alive for future generations.
2026 Preservation Awards | Bob Russell Realty Building
Constructed in 1967, the Bob Russell Realty Building was rehabilitated to restore its New Formalist character after years of interior alteration. Carefully reconstructed interiors and preserved exterior features maintain its architectural identity while supporting modern office use.
2026 Preservation Awards | Central Fire Station
The former Columbia Central Fire Station was transformed into The Lantern, a boutique hotel that reimagines the mid-century civic complex for contemporary use. Key architectural elements were retained while former operational spaces were adapted into welcoming hospitality areas.