Chiraag Bhakta: Designing the Dream State
Joseloff Gallery
February 23 – March 25, 2023
This exhibition features new work created by Chiraag Bhakta during his tenure as the Hartford Art School’s inaugural Whitney Artist-in-Residence. Graduating from HAS in 1999 with a degree in Graphic Design, Bhakta is now expanding his understanding of design beyond graphics. Designing the Dream State looks at empire building, specifically the evolution of South Asian-American identities post 1965, when new immigration policies were designed to bring highly educated South Asians to the U.S. in pursuit of the “American Dream.” The exhibition includes new work in video, sculpture, screenprinting, and assemblage, alongside Bhakta’s ongoing photo-documentary series, The Arch Motel Project. Taken together, the artwork sheds light on the many ways that design enters our everyday lives, from banal marketing to the construction of personal memories.
The exhibition and related programming are made possible by the International Distinguished Artist Symposium and Exhibition Fund and the Beatrice Fox Auerbach Foundation Fund held by Hartford Art School Endowment, Inc.