It’s been more than four years now since Ian M Hassett passed away in June of 2012 after a year-long battle with non-Hodgkins Lymphoma. The young man showed an aptitude for art at an early age by drawing and playing music; he earned his first art award in junior high school.
Ian handled his illness with dignity and grace, explained his mother Stefanie Hassett, and his attitude and creativity were the inspiration for the Ian M Hassett Foundation. The Foundation will celebrate its fourth annual fundraiser event, Form Over Function, on Oct. 15. The fundraiser serves as a showcase of art and a celebration of what Ian was all about.
And the Ian M Hassett Foundation has certainly put the funds it’s raised over the four years to good use. This last year has seen an expansion of programs offered by the foundation, Stefanie explained.
“He was passionate about art, and he was passionate about people,” she said. “And when you put those two things together, great things can happen.”
The foundation originally began with a scholarship of $1,000 awarded to an art student at Righetti High School, Ian’s alma mater. But the programs offered by the Ian M Hassett Foundation have grown every year.
One of the original ideas was an art exchange, a place where young artists could receive supplies at no cost and where artists could donate supplies as well. The Hassett family acquired a trailer, which Ian’s father, Eric, rehabilitated “from the walls up,” Stefanie said.
The first stop for the art exchange was at Righetti in 2015, but the most recent visit was to Pioneer Valley High School last month, Stefanie explained.
“We went in fully stocked. We brought more art supplies than we had ever had before, and by the time we were done we had nothing left,” she said. “We had all kinds of drawing utensils, pastels, chalk, pens and pencils, watercolor, acrylic, oil, drawing pads, sketch pads, canvases of all sizes. We had paint brushes, books, magazines, sculpting tools, drafting tools, just about anything you can imagine.”
The art exchange was visited by at least 150 students, she explained, who were all “very polite.” The art exchange was open to more than just art students too, so students new to art could explore it, she said.
Also new this year to the Ian M Hassett Foundation’s programs is a monthly art class offered to VTC Enterprise’s clients. The foundation provides VTC with the supplies and art instructor, Stefanie explained, and VTC provides the place.
“There’s a little bit of an artist in everyone, and sometimes it’s just helping them find that,” she said. “There were some incredibly artistic clients at VTC last month, and all of their work was very different. We were just excited to see that in them and see them express themselves through their art.”
The foundation has included another first this year, an exhibition of work by young artists. The show was the first public showcase for the aspiring creators.
All of the programs are designed with Ian in mind, Stefanie said, and his creative spirit.
“It’s all about carrying on his desire to help other artists,” she said. “He wanted to see other artists flourish and grow, so we are just honoring that wish.”
The Form Over Function Fundraiser is a huge celebration of that creative spirit. The event includes live music, catered food, wine, art, and a “create your own” art activity. There will be auction items as well as a raffle of a mountain bike, which you don’t have to be present to win, Stefanie said.
Overall, the event is just about having a great time, celebrating Ian, what the foundation has accomplished, and supporting that artistic vision, she explained.
“People recognize that it’s all going toward a really good cause and that we’re feeding everything back into the community,” she said. “We aren’t focused on the money, we just want people to come and celebrate what we’re able to do in our community through art.”
Arts Editor Joe Payne is always ready to celebrate art. Contact him at jpayne@santamariasun.com.
This article appears in Oct 13-20, 2016.
