Special Projects

Learn more about the special projects that the Hartford Art School Endowment, Inc. is currently supporting. Learn more about past special project support here.

Creative Career Connections (C3) Summer Practicum Scholarship

Thanks to the generosity of our Board, the Hartford Art School was able to launch the HAS Creative Career Connection (C3) summer practicum scholarship. This fund is intended to help undergraduate students participate in valuable internships or artist residency experiences that have great potential but may not be “affordable” for all students. It is a competitive program for those pursuing a high-quality practicum that is likely to further their academic goals, professional goals, and career exploration.


2022-23 Whitney Artist-in-Residence: Chiraag Bhakta

The HASE, Inc. board has encouraged the development of a program to help infuse our campus with creative energy and community engagement while a full International Distinguished Artists Symposium and Exhibition (IDASE) is planned.

As a 1999 VCD alum, Chiraag is excited about the idea of returning to the Hartford Art School to share his creative process with faculty, students, and staff.  Professor Mark Snyder has stated: “Chiraag’s work always comes out of deep research and observation. It is often collaborative and is not based on creative labels or limited to specific media. He is a lifelong learner, tapping into both intellectual and technological curiosities to shape his projects. He teaches himself the necessary technology to realize his creative ideas, and if he cannot master them himself, he collaborates with a thought/skill expert. Sharing this with our students or ‘showing through doing’ mentorship [will] be invaluable to our students at every level.”


2023 MFA Fellowship

Planned for Spring 2023, hosted by the MFA Low-Residency program in Illustration.


Summer Programs: Teacher Visual Arts Workshop and Pre-Collegiate Portfolio Workshop

During July and August of 2022, the Hartford Art School had the pleasure of hosting students and teachers from across CT. The HASE, Inc. endowment fully supported tuition and program costs for 40 teachers and 17 students.

For students, this opportunity provided an educational experience that allowed them to connect with each other, challenge themselves, think critically, and problem solve over the summer break—all while creating new artwork to build their portfolio.

The teacher workshop was a chance to take those partnerships to the next level, giving high school teachers from around the state the chance to experiment with specialized, time-intensive art techniques—including bronze pouring—under the guidance of skilled HAS faculty and staff members.