Fr. Larry Hostetter, Brescia University president, (left), welcomes guests to a new art exhibit on Sept. 3. Brescia hosted an opening reception for the commemorative art exhibit showcasing the art and teaching of the late Ursuline Sr. Mary Diane Taylor. In the center is Jim Barr, a noted artist and former student of Sr. Mary Diane’s. At right is David Stratton, professor of art at Brescia who brought the exhibit to fruition. COURTESY OF MOUNT SAINT JOSEPH
Brescia University opens new exhibit showcasing late renowned Ursuline Sister
BY MOUNT SAINT JOSEPH STAFF, SPECIAL TO THE WESTERN KENTUCKY CATHOLIC
On Sept. 3, 2021, Brescia University in Owensboro hosted an opening reception for the commemorative art exhibit showcasing the art and teaching of the late Ursuline Sr. Mary Diane Taylor. Sr. Mary Diane died June 28, 2021, in her 69th year as an Ursuline Sister of Mount Saint Joseph. She began serving as an art professor at Brescia in 1967 and retired 51 years later in 2018. In 2016, the administration building was renamed Bartholomy-Taylor Hall in her honor.
Sr. Amelia Stenger, congregational leader of the Ursuline Sisters, spoke about Sr. Mary Diane Taylor at the Sept. 3 opening night of an art exhibit. This is the first art exhibit in the C.E. Field Center for Professional Studies at Brescia, which opened in 2020. Fr. Hostetter said it was fitting that the exhibit honors Sr. Mary Diane for her years at Brescia, the Ursuline Sisters’ long influence on the college, and for the many students Sr. Mary Diane taught. Some of her former students were on hand for the reception.
The exhibit is open from 8:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Friday and will run until Oct. 26. Sr. Mary Diane specialized in color theory, stained glass, tapestry, quilting, calligraphy, design, art history, and printmaking.
Originally printed in the October 2021 issue of The Western Kentucky Catholic.
