Sister Lillian Kroll’s artwork will be featured at the Evelyn Matthies Porthole Gallery at 712 Washington Street in Brainerd from April 1-May 28. A public reception is scheduled for Saturday, May 2, from 2-4 p.m.
A Franciscan Sister for 77 years, Sister Lillian was born in Royalton and the oldest of 13 children. She taught music and religion for 11 years in Flensburg, Fergus Falls, Elk River and Wait Park before teaching full-time in elementary education. She also worked as Director of Religion in St. Cloud; Family Ministry in Wautoma, Wis; Vocation Director in Little Falls; Director of Retreats and Spiritual Direction in Hawaii, Canada and Minnesota; and tour guide to Israel and Italy.
“In the past, I used a variety of materials and mediums in my artwork and that was a stretching experience for me,” Sister Lillian said. “Now my focus is on watercolor to reproduce elements of beauty in God’s creation. The glory of creation often brings me into a mystical experience which I had for the first time at age seven. I believe my art expresses and reveals my inner spirit and soul, which I offer. May it benefit whomever it touches as an act of love.”
Watercolor painting has a way of taking Sister Lillian out of herself and into a world of color. She finds energy and exhilaration as the color takes shape on paper and as she sees in nature what she never saw before. “Each finished product is a delight,” she said. “Painting is a time when all stress – and even pain – evaporates during the creative process.”
A Franciscan Sister for 77 years, Sister Lillian was born in Royalton and the oldest of 13 children. She taught music and religion for 11 years in Flensburg, Fergus Falls, Elk River and Wait Park before teaching full-time in elementary education. She also worked as Director of Religion in St. Cloud; Family Ministry in Wautoma, Wis; Vocation Director in Little Falls; Director of Retreats and Spiritual Direction in Hawaii, Canada and Minnesota; and tour guide to Israel and Italy.
“In the past, I used a variety of materials and mediums in my artwork and that was a stretching experience for me,” Sister Lillian said. “Now my focus is on watercolor to reproduce elements of beauty in God’s creation. The glory of creation often brings me into a mystical experience which I had for the first time at age seven. I believe my art expresses and reveals my inner spirit and soul, which I offer. May it benefit whomever it touches as an act of love.”
Watercolor painting has a way of taking Sister Lillian out of herself and into a world of color. She finds energy and exhilaration as the color takes shape on paper and as she sees in nature what she never saw before. “Each finished product is a delight,” she said. “Painting is a time when all stress – and even pain – evaporates during the creative process.”
