Jan. 10, 2011

Briar Cliff Presents Life and Art of Sister Sylvia Nennig

SIOUX CITY, Iowa – The Briar Cliff University Faculty Development Committee will present “The Prairie Fire: A Celebration of the Life and Art of Sister Sylvia Nennig” at 3:15 p.m. on Thursday, Jan. 13, 2011, in the Clare Room in the Stark Student Center on campus.

At the event, Nan Wilson, chairperson of the art department and assistant professor at Briar Cliff, and Jeff Baldus, assistant instructor of art at BCU, will provide an overview of Sister Sylvia’s artwork. A reception in the Clausen Art Gallery on campus will immediately follow the presentation. This free event is open to the public.

Curated by Wilson, the exhibit contains many large-scale fabric tie-dyed, linocut printed fabric pieces and wooden carved sculptural crucifixes, which will be on display in the gallery, Jan. 13 through Jan. 30, 2011.

The Clausen Art Gallery is located in the Stark Student Center and is open to the public from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m., Monday through Friday; and from noon to 6 p.m., Saturdays and Sundays during the exhibit.

A lifelong artist and art educator, Sister Sylvia Nennig died in May of 2010, leaving a large body of artwork to her community of The Sisters of Saint Francis of the Holy Family at Mount Saint Francis, Dubuque, Iowa.

The artwork is on loan to Briar Cliff University for the purpose of honoring Sister Sylvia, who was formerly known as Sister Thomas Aquinas. From 1941 to 1965, she designed and oversaw the Briar Cliff art department and taught art at Briar Cliff for the majority of those years.

Briar Cliff University is a Catholic institution with an enrollment of more than 1,150 students from 29 states and 11 other countries. Students are educated in the Franciscan tradition of excellence in the liberal arts and career preparation in an environment of care, compassion and service. For more information, please visit briarcliff.edu.

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