Abstract: The Bergman kernel is the integral kernel which, on a given domain D, projects L² (D) onto its holomorphic subspace. This talk will be an introduction to the Bergman kernel: how it is computed on certain domains, a few of its applications, and the result obtained in my dissertation about the asymptotics of the kernel near the boundary diagonal. This talk should be accessible to a general audience. No previous knowledge of Bergman theory is assumed, and I will review the necessary elements from complex variables.