Art, Beauty and Joy

The Franciscan Sisters of Perpetual Adoration have cultivated art, beauty and joy through leadership, encouragement and support of the fine arts. Many women with natural ability for the arts joined the community and offered their talents to the students and others they encountered in schools and parishes.

Franciscan Sisters of Perpetual Adoration Clara Leinfelder and Silveria Goetzmann
Franciscan Sisters of Perpetual Adoration Clara Leinfelder and
Silveria Goetzmann

black-white-photo-Franciscan Sisters of Perpetual Adoration procession on Centennial Day
Franciscan Sisters of Perpetual Adoration process from Viterbo College (now known as Viterbo University) to Maria Angelorem Chapel.

The arts have a way of inspiring a love for learning and creating communities committed to collaboration rather than competition. Below is a glimpse into the the vast array of talents surrounding the FSPA community. Help us honor the history of these dedicated hearts and minds and share in the art, beauty and joy of the Franciscan Sisters of Perpetual Adoration.

Franciscan Sisters of Perpetual Adoration artists with paintings
Franciscan Sisters of Perpetual Adoration Verena Dauser, Merietta Hackner, Kiliana Burghauser and Gervina Schilling

FSPA Visual Art Experience

"With every stroke of the paintbrush, every stitch in fabric, every handful of clay, every iconography workshop and every shaving of wood that falls away, the history of the Franciscan Sisters of Perpetual Adoration is told through the art and fine arts created over the years by the sisters themselves," Perspectives magazine shares in the story "FSPA Shares 'Love of Creation," Franciscan tradition of art."

"Art has always played an essential role in the lives of the sisters — an outlet to express their love of creation, a celebration of the beauty of the world and a means to live out their Franciscan values. The Franciscan tradition of art is often encapsulated in the legendary story of Mother Antonia Herb, who went out to buy food for the community and purchased a painting instead. As she explained it, the sisters needed food for their souls as well as their bodies."

For 175 years, FSPA has worked to enrich the lives of others. They are a talented group of individuals, working past retirement to serve and inspire. The creativity they possess spans a reach that not only touches their immediate community but spans worldwide.

Now it is critical that we preserve the legacy of “every brush stroke” and share the beauty and joy of FSPA art in this visual collection. A selection of FSPA artists and their galleries of work are to be featured here, in celebration of both 175 years of prayer, witness and service, and their legacies will live on in this visual gallery for generations to come.

Franciscan Sisters of Perpetual Adoration-history-wataercolor-images "FSPA History Timeline," by Franciscan Sister of Perpetual Adoration Maryam Gossling, created for FSPA's 150th jubilee.
The images are on display in the Gathering Room at St. Rose Convent in La Crosse, Wisconsin.

Celebrating Franciscan Sister of Perpetual Adoration Shirley Wagner

Franciscan Sister of Perpetual Adoration Shirley Wagner

Franciscan Sister of Perpetual Adoration Shirley Wagner, born in 1930, grew up in Marathon, Wisconsin. She is a trained classical musician, earning both her bachelor's and master's degrees in music with an emphasis in conducting. For 30 years, she taught and conducted high school, college and community symphonies in the central and upper Midwest. After retiring from a life of conducting music, she began a second career as a pastoral minister at Holy Rosary Parish in Medford, Wisconsin. She retired from ministry in 1999 and has devoted herself to working as a full-time artisan.

A La Crosse Tribune article, written by Mike Tighe in 2019, documents Sister Shirley's artistic awakening:

"Sister Shirley began woodworking after she was inspired by a photo in a craft magazine of an intarsia wolf. She saw the photo and thought, "I can do that!" Not long after inspiration struck, Sister Shirley purchased a $1,200 Hegner saw and taught herself the centuries-old woodcraft of intarsia. Intarsia is a technique that gained popularity in the 12th century and is a form of wood inlaying to create a mosaic-like picture with an illusion of depth. Sister Shirley uses a variety of natural woods from forests around the world to create these unique pieces."

Sister Shirley has produced more than 700 commissioned works, displayed in five countries, with a range in size from a 20-foot rendition of the "Last Supper" to miniscule pieces for dollhouses.