Education extends beyond textbooks and the classroom, thanks to Jean Swanson, whose donation created the Art Department Visiting Artist Endowment. Students encounter artists and traditions they might never otherwise experience, expanding both their creative skills and their cultural understanding.
This spring, NHCC welcomed Fern Cloud, a Native American artist known for her traditional buffalo hide painting. Using natural pigments and tools such as bone brushes and willow branches, she demonstrates techniques rooted in generations of Indigenous practice. Her work honors storytelling, heritage, and the preservation of culture through art.
Through hands-on engagement, students witness not only technique but the meaning and history carried within each piece. For many students, experiences like this are transformative. They gain a deeper understanding of art, culture, history, and creative expression in ways traditional classroom instruction alone cannot provide.
Experiences like this do not happen by chance. The fund exists because Jean believed NHCC art students should have access to artistic techniques and ideas beyond those typically taught in class. That belief led to the creation of an endowment that provides annual funding to bring visiting artists to campus and enrich the student experience for years to come.
Because of a donor’s vision and generosity, NHCC students continue to experience immersive, culturally rich learning opportunities each year. Philanthropy enables students to create, understand, and imagine more for themselves.
