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Dedicated to the preservation of representational art

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Susan Fleming Hotard OPA Memorial Scholarship Application

The Susan Fleming Hotard OPA Memorial Scholarship celebrates the life and generosity of Susan Fleming Hotard, a cherished OPA Signature artist, mentor, and friend. Throughout her career, Susan earned numerous awards recognizing her skill and dedication. Known for her kind heart and sense of humor, Susan often said she loved helping “starving” artists, offering encouragement, guidance, and support to anyone pursuing their artistic dreams. Her advice to artists was inspiring and straightfoward: “Keep painting! Keep studying! Keep trying to learn and get better. Encourage others.”   

“Exodus 31 in the Holy Bible tells us that God gave each artisan the ability to perform his/her craft. That is my inspiration.” (Article “Meet Susan Hotard”, https://voyagehouston.com/interview/meet-susan-hotard/, July 11, 2018)

This $500 scholarship helps an OPA artist attend a workshop or class in representational oil painting, carrying forward Susan’s passion for teaching, learning, and nurturing creativity. Through this scholarship, her legacy of generosity, inspiration, and love for the arts continues to touch the lives of fellow artists.

Scholarship Eligibility

  • Appli­cants must be current associate members of OPA

Online Application Process

The online application form requires:

  • Applicants must complete the online scholarship application between August 1 and December 1.
  • A brief essay on why you are interested in pursuing a career in painting. The document may be cut and pasted or processed directly into the online application form.  Essays should be no more than 500 words.
  • Applicant must submit two digital images of his/her artwork

Deadline

Application and attachments need to be turned in to Oil Painters of America August 1 through December 1.

Selection of Recipients

Oil Painters of America’s scholarship committee will review all applications and supporting materials received by December 1, and will select a recipient by February 1. All applicants agree to accept the committee’s decision as final.

Notification

Recipient of scholarship will be notified by March 1st.

Amount of Award

The $500 scholarship must be used to attend a workshop or class in representational oil painting.

Payment of Scholarship

Award winners must receive approval from the Oil Painters of America before enrolling or attending a workshop or class. All scholarship funds will be disbursed directly by OPA to the designated workshop and/or class.

Questions

Please send any questions or correspondence to scholarships@oilpaintersofamerica.com.

Susan Fleming Hotard OPA Memorial Scholarship Application

  • This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.

  • Scholarship Submission Information
    Deadline: Applications must be received by December 1, 2026
    Please write a brief essay on the role that art has had on your life. The document may be cut and pasted or processed directly into the online application form. Essays should be a minimum of 250 words and no more than 500 words.
  • Max. file size: 10 MB.
  • Upload two digital images of your work to DropBox (300 dpi, jpeg preferred)

    DropBox Directions
    • Click Here to watch a dropbox video tutorial.
    • Please upload your application images to your dropbox account. Be sure to create a new folder for your images and title the folder with your First and Last Name.
    • If you do not have a drop box you can set one up here.
    • Share that folder with scholarships@oilpaintersofamerica.com.
    • How to share a folder in drop box.
      1. Hover your cursor over the folder you want to share.
      2. Click the blue Share button that appears.
      3. Enter this email addresses, scholarships@oilpaintersofamerica.com.
      4. Select Can edit from the pull-down menu.
      5. Then click Share.
    No time limitation applies to when paintings were created.

Susan Fleming Hotard OPA

Past Winners

2026

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    • Mission, Policies & Bylaws
    • Board of Directors
    • Presidential History
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    • OPA Staff
    • Contact Us
  • Membership Services
    • Member Login
    • Membership Information
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    • Membership Directory
    • Contact Membership Department
  • Events
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    • Museum Road Trip Video Archives
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    • Critique Services
    • Have A HeART Humanitarian Award
  • Sponsorship
  • Scholarships
  • Store
  • Awardees
  • Blog
    • Recent Blogs

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