As a young teen, he studied with Otto Stark at Manual High School[4] which is now used as offices by Eli Lilly and Company.
[1][2][4][5] In order to finance his education, Hardrick worked at the Indianapolis Stove Foundry [4][6] and sold newspapers.
[3] By 1917, Hardrick's local reputation was such that he and William Edouard Scott were featured in the Tenth Annual Exhibition of Works by Indiana Artists at the Herron School of Art, both men receiving critical praise.
Commenting on a 1927 exhibition at the Pettis Gallery in Indianapolis, one review stated that his work had seemed to grow and mature in those two years.
[3] That same year Hardrick and Woodruff were among those featured at the Art Institute of Chicago's exhibition of African-American artists.
It was presented to him by mayor Ert Slack during a ceremony which honored the achievements of local African-Americans as part of the city's sixth annual Inter-Racial Sunday.
It was presented to the high school principal Russell Lane, who refused to install the mural due to its depiction of the laborers and his concern that it would dampen student aspirations.
[4] In 1928 he also painted a mural at the African Methodist Episcopal Church in Indianapolis entitled "Christ and the Samaritan Woman at the Well.
Hale Woodruff and Hardrick shared a studio for a time in the 1920s at 541 Indiana Avenue[4] and in 1927 exhibited together at the Art Institute of Chicago.
[1] His work was also displayed in the Hoosier Salon at Marshall Field Art Gallery in Chicago, Illinois in 1929, 1931, and 1934.
[19] Certain of Hardrick's works are lost, including Lady X[3] and murals painted for a WPA commission for local Indianapolis schools.
The artist was unable to pay the freight charges to retrieve the work, and records of its present location are unavailable.