New Hampshire Institute of Art

New Hampshire Institute of Art
Established	1898
Type	Private
Undergraduates	427[1]
Location	Manchester, New Hampshire, USA
Campus	Urban
Website	www.nhia.edu

The New Hampshire Institute of Art is a bachelor's degree-granting college that provides an undergraduate education in the fine arts, complemented by majors in the professional arts. It is the only independent college of art in the state of New Hampshire. Located in the heart of Manchester, New Hampshire's Victory Park National Historic District, the institute offers a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree with concentrations in Ceramics, Illustration, Painting, Photography, Interdisciplinary Arts, Art Education, and the newly added Graphic Design program. The institute has a collaborative agreement with the University of New Hampshire at Manchester that allows students interested in pursuing a degree in Fine Art to transfer into the institute's BFA program. The institute also offers certificate programs in Painting, Ceramics, Interior Design and Photography through its Continuing Education program. The institute serves as an important cultural center for the city of Manchester and the state of New Hampshire. It is accredited by the National Association of Schools of Art and Design (NASAD) and is a candidate for accreditation from the New England Association of Schools and Colleges (NEASC).

History

The school was founded in 1898 as the Manchester Institute of Arts and Sciences. The goal of the founders was to cultivate an appreciation of the arts through progressive educational instruction. In 1924, the State Board of Education certified the institute’s four-year program to prepare high school graduates to teach art. Shortly thereafter, a four-year program in Fine Arts was approved.

In 1997, the New Hampshire Postsecondary Commission authorized the institute to award the Bachelor of Fine Arts degree. At that time the institute became the New Hampshire Institute of Art. In 2001, the New Hampshire Institute of Art received accreditation from the National Association of Schools of Art and Design. The institute is a candidate for accreditation from the New England Association of Schools and Colleges.

Campus

The NHIA is located in the Victory Park National Historic District of Manchester, New Hampshire. The campus consists of five academic buildings and six dormitories.

The most recent addition to the campus is the new 88 Lowell St. Building, a six-story dorm with the top four floors housing 56 students and the bottom floors used as classrooms. In the front of the building is a renovated schoolhouse connected to the main building. 88 Lowell was built as a green building.^{[citation needed]}

In 2005 a series of classrooms were built in a studio building housed in a former paint shop on Amherst Street. The building was originally home to the PSNH meter department. In addition to classroom space, the facility is also home to a public art supply store and gallery on the first floor. The building was purchased by the institute in 2005, renovated by local architect Dennis Mires, P.A., and won an honor award for adaptive reuse by the New Hampshire chapter of the American Institute of Architects.

Notable faculty and alumni

• James Aponovich, Artist Laureate of New Hampshire, 2006
• Kyle Mosher (2009) Multimedia artist
• John William Noga (1903–1997), New Hampshire Wildlife Federation Lifetime Achievement award

References

1. ^ "Quick Facts". New Hampshire Institute of Art. http://www.nhia.edu/quick-facts/. Retrieved May 5, 2011. 

• UNHM Academics, Special Programs
• Dennis Mires P.A., The Architects

External links

• College website

Coordinates: 42°59′30″N 71°27′39″W / 42.99167°N 71.46083°W / 42.99167; -71.46083